Willow's Thief
by Luna del Cielo
Summary: Willow is finishing up her detox in England when she realizes someone is stealing from her pantry. She finds the thief and maybe, just maybe, he'll steal more than just her bread and eggs. Willow/Sirius Sunny D 4x Award Winner & COA Nominated!*COMPLETE*
1. Discovery of the Thief

**Summary: **Willow is finishing up her detox in England when she realizes someone is stealing from her pantry. She finds the thief and maybe, just maybe, he'll steal more than just her bread and eggs. Willow/Sirius

**Set Up: **Set after Season 6 when Willow is just about finished with her official 'detox' in England. In HP its set after the Prisoner of Azkaban.

**Author Notes: **Couldn't sleep and I've been wanting to do a BTVS/HP cross for a while now. Please review and let me know how you like it : ) I also have some writer's block for my other stories and felt the need to write something for the moment.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Buffy or Harry Potter. If I did, I would probably swim in a pool of white wine and buy Orlando Bloom as my mail-order-husband. Just sayin ;)

* * *

Willow wasn't like Xander. She didn't tend to count her food items down to the last Twinkie. But even she couldn't help but that notice that food had been disappearing from her cupboards over the last week.

At first she thought it had been her imagination that three eggs and a loaf of bread were missing from her kitchen the first day. After all, she was staying in a cottage in the middle of nowhere. Her closest neighbors were the members of the coven that Giles had taken her to in the beginning of the summer. Since she was going through the end stages of her treatment - meditation and self-reflection - she never had any of them visit.

But now she was starting to get the wiggins.

It was clear that while she left for walks in the woods someone was breaking in and stealing food.

On a scale of criminal activity, she figured that stealing food wasn't that terrible. It was obviously taken because the person needed it. But still… to know that someone was in her home, in her private quarters… Well, hence the origination point of her current wiggins.

So enough was enough. Willow was finally comfortable practicing magic again - to an extent anyways - and she was ready to catch the intruder.

After laying her trap, Willow left the next afternoon at the typical time for her walk in the woods. She kept her eyes and ears open, but she didn't come across anyone out there - what she wouldn't give for some of Buffy's slayer abilities right now.

But she was a big girl and would deal with this situation the best way she could.

After thirty minutes passed, she rushed back her cottage. When she walked into her kitchen she expected to see the intruder dangling from a vine that was set to be conjured at the entrance of an unidentified person, but instead the vine was lying on the ground.

The tip of it looked to be charred and there was a smell of magical residue in the air. Her eyes scanned the area and Willow noticed a piece of parchment lying on the table.

On it, in old-fashioned script, it read:

----

Dear Madam,

My terrible apologies for intruding into your home. I am remiss about my actions but please know that I did not intend any harm. At first I had thought it was a Muggle home and did not think anyone would notice.

Again, my sincerest apologies.

---

Willow found it odd that the note was not signed. Well, okay, that did make sense on account of the writer being a thief.

She grinned as an idea struck her. Whispering a few words, she performed a spell to illuminate the path of the magic user who had been in her kitchen.

Where the vine lay a blue light shimmered into being and began unraveling past the door. Quickly, she began to follow the path of light.

She was no longer creeped out by the intruder - partly thanks to his formal note - but now her curiosity was driving her wild. Especially because the brand of magic the intruder used had a residue that she had never experienced before. Whereas her magic, like the members of the coven, was wild and tied to nature, this magic seemed more focused and different somehow.

Plus, she was curious to know what the heck a 'Muggle' was.

The path led her through the darkest part of the woods where a small mountain began forming. In the side of the mountain was a cave and the blue light flickered at the opening.

Willow bit her lip. She realized suddenly that she wasn't sure what she was supposed to accomplish by confronting this person. It may even be dangerous to do so.

As her mind deliberated on her next action, she was interrupted by a loud screech and a flap of wings.

Looking up, she screamed. The creature looked like something out of Giles' books. It had the head of a bird, was covered with feathers, but its body was more horse-like. As it swooped low, she ducked and rolled across the ground.

Landing on the grass, it eyed her fiercely and she found herself struck dumb. Monsters were not her business. Sure, she knew spells, but she hadn't used any large-scale ones since her detox began.

It began charging her and she shrieked again. A man's voice called out, "Buckbeak! Stop!" and Willow looked up to see the strange creature obligingly stop in place, only five feet from her.

Turning around to thank her savior, she saw him standing at the foot of the cave.

The intruder.

He did seem to appear like a thief of sorts. He was dirty and his shoulder-length hair was unkempt. His face was tan and gaunt; clearly he had truly needed that food. He wore no shirt and while his face was thin, his upper body showed signs of lean muscle - the kind you probably developed living on your own in nature. But his eyes glowed with life and she could see that he would probably be a handsome man - if he took a shower, that is.

'_Eeek! Bad girl!'_ she mentally chastised herself. It had been a while since she had found someone handsome. Since… Well, since Before. Besides, she considered herself gay and thus not interested in men.

More or less, anyways.

And maybe right now more of the 'less' was taking place.

Ah, but that was probably due to him saving her… Even though it was his fault she was attacked in the first place. Although, she supposed she didn't *_have_* to come out here. But still.

Gah. She was so busy with her mental babble that she didn't realize he had walked up to her.

"I'm sorry for Buckbeak. He's a bit overprotective these days," he offered kindly. But his eyes darted wildly, like he was wondering if there were others out there.

"Um, it's okay." She bit her lip, unsure if a 'thank you' or a reprimand was in order. She decided to be polite, first, on account of him being able to 'sic' that Buckbeak thing at her.

"Thank you, for, ya know, helping me out with him," she said as she gestured towards the creature.

He sighed, sounding a bit relieved. "Of course." His eyes stopped darting around to appraise her. A slight smile made its way up his features. When he smiled, he looked much nicer, she realized.

She mentally shook herself. She would *_not_* think her thief was nice looking at all!

"So why have you been stealing from me?" she asked suddenly, and it came out more bluntly then she intended.

"Ah, yeah. About that. Look, I'm real sorry. I just don't have many options." A dark look passed through his face and she felt a bit of pity for the man. It helped that his British accent made his apology sound just that much better.

"You always have options," she informed him. "You could have just asked me."

The man looked surprised for a minute before he began laughing. "Yeah," he finally said. "That's not really something I'm used to."

Willow was curious as to what was this guy's deal. He was older than her, by maybe fifteen years, but he was still young enough to get a job somewhere if he didn't have money or a house. Right?

Before she knew was she was saying, it was done. "Well, how about you stay at my cottage for a few days where you can have some real meals - I'm sure eggs and bread are not that great every day - and a shower and a real bed."

His face sobered up. "I can't… I can't do that. You're a witch… Surely you must know?" Brown eyes peered at her sadly.

"Know what?" Willow bristled. "And yes, I am a witch, thank you very much. So what? Obviously you are too. Are you part of the Devon Coven a few miles up north? I'm with them."

Willow idly wondered if maybe he didn't want to stay with her because she was a witch… And because she surely must know that everyone was afraid of her now, since she tried to end the world and all.

"Coven? Really?" His eyebrow quirked upwards. "Hmm. I heard about them in my Muggles Studies class," he said under his breath as he looked away. "So you practice Earth magic?" he asked in a louder voice.

"Yes," she replied uncertainly.

"And you don't have anything to do with the Wizarding Community?"

"Huh?" He eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "I've never heard of that."

"Hmm," was his only reply.

"So," she started again, "I'm walking home. The invitation is still open, if you want to take it." She was still perplexed by the man and his odd comments, but she felt bad leaving him out here, especially with a late summer thunderstorm brewing.

The man nodded slowly.

"I think I'd like that. For a few days, anyway."

* * *

A/N:

So, any thoughts? This was just the intro chapter and I would like to develop some romance for our heroes, but I guess that will depend on my muse and if anyone reviews and is interested in this pairing!

Thank you for reading!


	2. Everyone’s a Little Bit Crazy, From Time

**Chapter Two: Everyone's a Little Bit Crazy, From Time to Time.**

The walk to the woman's cottage was quiet. Sirius found himself drawn to the woman - It had been so long since someone had been kind to him. Years even, if he didn't count the recent encounter with Remus, Harry, and Hermione. Her presence was comforting; perhaps it was because she reminded him a bit of Lily with her red hair and the warm glow she gave off.

His heart tugged. No matter how many years went by, he missed his friends terribly.

Sirius glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. She wore a long, green linen skirt with white blouse, and he grinned at the image she conjured. The woman looked a lot like the Muggle women he and James met during a themed Muggle party once. Wizards didn't often venture into the Muggle world often, but he had dragged James to go with him because of a pretty bird he had met. They event, luckily, had ended up being quite 'far out', as his date had put it.

As the cottage came into view, Sirius shifted nervously. Suddenly he was starting to get paranoid again. What if he had read her wrong? What if she had lied and was really an Auror? What if she had back-up waiting for him?

He fingered his stolen wand nervously in his pocket and looked over his shoulder; hoping that Buckbeak was still watching from the woods.

The woman's lips pursed as she gave him a curious look. He grinned in spite of himself - she was rather cute when she did that.

"Sorry. I'm not used to - er - social situations much anymore," he explained. Merlin knows being stuck in Azkaban had almost destroyed him and besides that one night at Hogwarts his only companion had been a hippogriff.

"It's alright," she said with a knowing smile as she paused at the doorway. Likely she could tell by his looks and smell he wasn't exactly number one on party invitation lists.

Then she laughed nervously. "Oh, Goddess, I just realized I invited you to my home and we haven't even exchanged names." She shook her head and her cheeks tinted with embarrassment. "I'm Willow," she said, almost rather shyly.

Sirius froze. He hadn't thought this far ahead. He just met the bird and he wasn't sure he could trust her. Awkwardly he cleared his throat. "My friends call me Padfoot."

"Padfoot?" Her tiny nose wrinkled in confusion. "That's an interesting name."

He gave his most charming smile - the one that had worked on hundreds of girls back at Hogwarts. "It is interesting, and sadly not as pretty as Willow I'm afraid." He was hoping his casual response would deter her from further questions. She seemed like a nice girl and he didn't enjoy lying if he didn't need to.

Green eyes studied him intently and he had to force himself not to cower under his gaze. He caught a whiff of power from her and Sirius wished he had paid more attention in class when they discussed the earth witches.

Willow nodded, apparently satisfied somehow. "Come on in, Padfoot. I'll get dinner started. Maybe, while I'm cooking, you might want to, er, bathe?" she asked hopefully, clearly hoping that she wasn't being rude in her assumption.

Sirius chuckled. "I stink that bad, huh?"

"Well," her lips curled into a grin. "You kinda smell like dog," she informed as she opened the door and walked into the cottage.

"Funny, that," he replied with a secretive smile as he followed her inside.

**~*~*~*~*~*~**

Willow felt flustered as she moved around the kitchen. It seemed her mind had caught up with her mouth and she was wondering what on earth she had been thinking to invite her pantry thief into her home. Already she could hear her friends chastising her. Buffy would give her a stern talk about inviting strange men in - even if it was daylight and she knew Sirius wasn't a vampire. Xander would likely threaten to get the shovel out of his truck and scare the guy off. Giles, of course, would just give her a harried look and clean his glasses.

Although Dawn, likely, would congratulate her on picking up her own dirty-hot Aragorn guy.

Well, that's what Dawnie would say. Not so Willow. No sirree. She didn't think he was hot in that gee-I-just-want-to-bathe-him kinda way.

Although, subjectively speaking - like she would comment on a piece of artwork, she would say he was sorta… ah… hot in that gee-I-just-want-to-bathe-him kinda way.

She gripped the counter and took a deep breath.

She was obviously, as her coven mentor Amelia would say, going 'mental'.

Not to mention, in the deepest part of herself, she feared her friends wouldn't be interested in chastising her on picking up a stray man as they would for everything else she had done.

Willow sighed as she began mixing together the mashed potato mix. She had already spent two weeks alone in this cabin and was scheduled for two more. After that, Giles said she would be ready to go back to Sunnydale.

She was already dreading it.

Dreading that they would ignore her. Dreading what they would say. Dreading that they would hate her.

Dreading that she truly may have lost everything.

Willow set down the mixer and stared at her shaking hands through blurry eyes. She knew she had come very far in the last four months, but sometimes the shadow over her heart seemed to grow with a vengeance. FDR may have once said "we have nothing to fear but fear itself", but dammit! Fear was pretty scary in itself!

Then she started giggling through her tears at the sudden memory of that cute little fear demon from their freshmen year Halloween. Who would have known that fear could be so cute and tiny?

A warm hand on her shoulder interrupted her mental babble and she looked up into Padfoot's brown eyes that gazed down at her with concern.

"Willow? Are you alright?" he asked uncertainly.

She winced, embarrassed at him catching her in the middle of one of her breakdowns - Breakdowns that were thankfully becoming sparser in number.

"Um," was the only reply she could make when he unexpectedly wiped away her tears with his thumb. His skin was calloused and rough, and it made her skin tingle.

She stepped back and took a deep breath. "Just, ya know, having a crazy moment. I tend to do that, lately. Be crazy," she added off his confused look. Then she frowned as she thought about what she had just said.

"But not crazy like ax-murderer or Norman Bates in the shower with a knife," she explained with some dramatic hand gestures. "No, not killer crazy."

Willow gasped at her words and clutched her stomach as a sharp stress pain hit her. "I mean," she began in a softer tone. "Not crazy like you need to worry about being here. Really."

Padfoot eyed her critically during her ramble - Willow bet he was wondering how quick he could get away from the crazy 'Dark One.'

Finally, he just gave her a soft smile. "I think everyone's a little bit crazy, from time to time."

Surprised by his casual acceptance of her weird behavior, Willow found herself smiling.

"How about, since you've been nice enough to host me, you let me finish cooking?" he offered.

Willow nodded slowly. "Thank you, Padfoot," she said sincerely.

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A/N:

Please review. I've already been getting a lot of good ideas just from the first batch of reviews-- thank you so much everyone! And keep them coming : )

Still just sort of setting things up at this point and doing some exploring of mental states… Hope you likey.


	3. The Juggernaut of the Babbling World

**Chapter 3: The Juggernaut of the Babbling World**

**A/N**:

Yes, I did make a tiny screw-up in the last chapter with Willow saying Sirius' name, but it's been edited- thanks for looking out faithful readers! Let's just say that Nyquil does funny things : )

Also, thanks SOOO much to everyone who has reviewed and/or read! I really appreciate it! I totally agree- we *seriously* need some Sirius/Willow love ;) heehee

* * *

Willow sat in the in the cozy breakfast nook connected to the kitchen and took another sip of her hot tea. Her nerves were calming down and she was reminded of the fact that she had been so worried about her intruder earlier that she did not have a proper meditative walk. That would have to be remedied after dinner.

Speaking of dinner… Her eyes kept straying to Padfoot as he moved around the kitchen. His shower seemed to have done wonders, thank goodness. He wore new pants, but still did not have a shirt. Typically, her inner hostess would have offered to remedy that, but…

She bit back a grin. With his hair still wet, occasional drops of moisture would fall onto his back or his chest, thus her lack of haste in helping out his wardrobe at the moment.

Okay, maybe she did find him teensy bit attractive… Not that it mattered, anyways.

Besides all prettiness aside, she was still perplexed by the man. Obviously, he had not told her his real name, which was rather suspicious itself. Add in a strange creature, references to words like 'muggle' and 'wizarding community', and the fact that he used a different kind of magic, well, color her intrigued.

Willow went into research gal mode as she watched him subtlety. She presumed that he must be a 'wizard' from this 'wizarding community', although Willow had never heard any reference to such things. There were witches and warlocks, but not wizards. Except for in the Lord of the Rings, and this guy was too young and attractive to be Gandalf.

His shabby appearance and nervous behavior earlier indicated that he had been living outside and away from people for a long time. But why? Was someone after him? And why would someone be after him?

She bit her lip in frustration. Her natural tendency when faced with the unknown was to learn all about it - and she disliked not knowing.

Of course, she *could* just ask him… But something in him seemed broken and she was unsure if he would truthfully answer any questions just yet.

Besides… she knew what it was like to be broken. No, she wouldn't push him. Not yet. Her gut was telling her that much.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Sirius knew he had a silly grin on his face, but he didn't really care. He was cooking - actually cooking! He hadn't been able to make his own food in a kitchen in thirteen years!

Of course, he had never really known how to cook in the first place, always leaving it to James' mom or Lily or a house elf. And he certainly was never taught to cook in the Muggle way!

But he knew how to read and figured he was faking it well so far. He had just finished mixing together the mashed potato mix that Willow had left and now put it on the stove. The box had said to keep the pot on the stove until the water came to a 'rising boil'. Peering at the controls, he turned the one onto 'High' and saw the wires underneath the pot light up.

Turning, he grabbed the box of pasta sitting out and dumped it into another pot filled with water. Again, he put the control on 'High' because he figured the sooner it cooked, the better. His stomach was positively growling at this point.

When he had finished his tasks he asked, "Willow? I had a pair of extra trousers in my sack but I'm afraid my shirt and my other pair of trousers are quite dirty. Might there be a place where I can wash them?"

She raised her head, having looked deep in thought while staring at her tea, and nodded. "Sure. There's a washing machine and dry in the basement. Make yourself at home." She smiled sweetly and Sirius felt himself return it. A shower, fresh clothes, and a real dinner - This was the best day he'd had since escaping Hogwarts at the beginning of the summer.

"Thank you." He made his own cup of tea and sat across from Willow. "For everything. I don't deserve it."

His chest tightened at his words. He truly didn't feel deserving of any kindness. For thirteen years he had lived with the guilt that because of him Peter had been made Secret-Keeper and not him, and with it came the deaths of his two friends. Although he felt a bit better by at least avenging his friends by outing Peter's true loyalty in front of Remus and Harry, his heart still felt heavy.

Her head cocked to the side and a stray strand of hair fell across her eyes. He was tempted, rather irrationally so, to push it back for her, but she did so herself.

"Why do you say such a thing?" she inquired softly.

Sirius' jaw tightened and he looked out the bay window. "I- It's a long story." He stayed silent, unwilling to go any further. Even if he felt like talking about it - which he did *not* at all - he couldn't tell her. Likely she would turn him in or something. He knew even the Muggle authorities had his wanted poster, although they didn't advertise it as often anymore since so much time had passed.

Willow nodded. "I get that. I do. Long stories tend to make up my life. But, well," she shrugged. "If you ever want to talk about it, you can. To me. I've been told that I'm a good listener when I'm not doing my infamous babble."

Sirius let out a barking laugh. This woman was definitely humorous, albeit strange. He was still confused about her outburst earlier when he found her both crying and laughing, and then rambling about not being crazy. He sensed that she probably had her own version of dementors chasing her.

"You babble is infamous?" he asked with a grin.

She laughed and covered her eyes with her hands. "As if you hadn't noticed already, Padfoot.

Strange how he found himself relaxed in his seat, conversing with her like it was a normal occurrence.

"Well, true, but I had no idea it was so infamous. I may need your autograph, Willow," he teased.

Instantly her hands dropped and her face darkened. "Trust me, you don't want my autograph," she said in a low, soft voice with faraway eyes.

Sirius' spine straightened and he was at a loss for words. What had he said wrong? He let out a defeated sigh. He was such a sodding idiot and obviously couldn't last five minutes in a normal conversation. Here she was, a perfectly nice and attractive young woman, letting him, a dirty wanted murderer, into her home and he had the nerve to upset her? Merlin, he *was* an idiot.

"I'm sorry if I offended you."

She didn't respond right away and just took a long sip of her tea, eyes staring out the window. Finally she turned them back to him. "It's not you, please don't mind me. Crazy, remember?" she responded with a weak smile as she pointed to her temple.

He gave her a smile of his own and reached across the table to grab her hand. "Hey, don't forget. I'm the dirty homeless man that smells like dog and who also happens to be crazy sometimes. So I'm not judging."

He was pleased to note that the sadness left her eyes and her smile looked more sincere. "True. But at least you don't smell or look bad anymore. So points for you," she offered.

A smirk formed at her words. "That's good to hear. Especially to hear you say I don't look bad, which much therefore mean that I look good," he said with a wink. Alright, perhaps flirting was not the right thing to do at the moment, but Sirius couldn't leave that hanging there. He found that the more he talked, the more he felt his old mannerisms return. And the Sirius of old was quite the ladies man.

Willow pulled her hand away from his and smoothed her hair back behind her ears. "That isn't what I meant, you know that," she said with rolled eyes, although her cheeks seemed to pinken. "Oh, not that I mean to say you are ugly or anything, because that would just be rude of me. I just meant that, yay, you are no longer the dog-man with your smells and looks. And…" She trailed off and smiled.

"You know, it's really just best for you to cut me off when I start to babble. Because once I get going, I can't stop. Xander calls me the Juggernaut of the Babbling world."

"Who's Xander? And what is a Juggernaut?" Sirius asked, amused by her reaction.

"Ah, well, Xander's my- my best friend," she replied hesitatingly. "From back home. And the Juggernaut is some comic book character, but I've never paid attention to that stuff."

Sirius had to stop himself from frowning. After all, it was not like he had any reason to… But he just didn't like the idea of this Xander guy. She may have said he was her best friend, but with the way she hesitated he knew there was a story somewhere. Was this Xander bloke her boyfriend? She was obviously a Yank, judging by her accent. Did he break her heart and she retreated here? Or was she here on earth witch business and missed him terribly?

He mentally shook himself. He just met the bird, she was far too young for him, and he really had no reason to wonder about her romantic life.

"Back home? Where's that?" he asked casually.

"California."

"Miss it?"

Willow bit her lip and Sirius felt like kicking himself. "Sorry, forget I asked. I'm obviously in sore need of expanding my conversational skills past just talking to a hippogriff every day."

"Hippogriff?" she asked with a confused smile, appearing content to overlook his verbal snafu.

"That's what Buckbeak is, a hippogriff."

"Really?" He nodded. "Wow. I think I've heard about those in Greek mythology or something, but I had no idea they were real. How'd you get one?"

Now Sirius was the one to feel awkward. "Uh, a friend gave him to me. Sorta, anyways. Hippogriffs are very particular animals and don't just let anyone ride them. In fact, you have to-"

But he stopped speaking when he heard a hissing noise emitting from the stove. "Oh bollocks!" He jumped up and rushed over to snatch the two pots off the stove top. The mashed potatoes had come to a rising boil alright - they rose up and over the pot. The pasta wasn't as bad, but he realized all the noodles were stuck together now.

He felt Willow approach and look over his shoulder. "Hmm. Well." She giggled. "Guess you don't cook much, do you?"

Sirius frowned. "Well, no, actually." If possible, it seemed that she laughed harder. "It's not quite that funny, you know," he chastised, but in truth he found it amusing to see her laugh at his cooking attempt. She seemed like the kind of woman who didn't laugh much anymore.

"I know, it's not that funny," she said between laughs. "It's just, this completely reminded me of the one time I let my friend Buffy try to cook for me." Willow calmed herself and smiled up at him. "Didn't your mom ever teach you to stir the noodles, or have you just been living in a cave for the past ten years?"

He winced, on both accounts of her words. His mother never taught him much besides the fact that Blacks were practically bloody royalty and that he was a traitorous, lousy son. She certainly had no time to teach him anything worth of value. As for living in a cave for ten years… She was more right then she knew.

"Oh, Goddess, I'm sorry," she declared with wide eyes. "Obviously I found you in a cave and I totally should not judge you on your living style, I'm so sorry." She sighed deeply and gave him a sorrowful look. "Forgive me?"

He shrugged and then smiled, wanting to make her feel at ease. "You have already forgiven many of my verbal mistakes. Of course, Willow."

"Good, I'm glad. How about, since we both are so not the cooking types today, we just put in a frozen pizza?"

Sirius had no idea what that was, but he was more than happy to stop his cooking attempts. "That sounds like a bloody wonderful idea."

* * *

So, what doth thou thinkest? Reviews are always lovely ; )

I know not much has happened yet, but stick with it. I've read too many Willow or Buffy HP x-overs where love and romance happen asap and I'm trying to go for something more believable here.

Juggernaut -- Mutant from the X-Men universe who is physically unstoppable once in motion-- .org/wiki/Juggernaut_(comics)


	4. Wet 'N' Wild

_Chapter 4: Wet 'N' Wild_

_A/N__**:**_

_**Sirius and Willow thank you for supporting their fun ;) And I appreciate all the reviews - and *especially* the recs. Mad, MAD thanks to anyanka & Erica!!**_

_**LOL~ and don't hate on their meal of pasta and mashed potatoes! That's all I lived on in college, thanks my Sirius-ly bad cooking skills (ha!ha! Yeah, I'm never going to get tired of that pun ;) I never thought that was a weird combo! : )**_

_

* * *

_

_Willow mused to herself as she set the kitchen table. Even though their home-cooked meal had ended up inedible, she thought the least she could do for Padfoot was *try* to make dinner look nice with some plates and fun printed napkins. The napkins were her favorite - she had found them in a cupboard, clearly left over from Halloween, since they featured little witches on it. Mind you, she typically didn't like the commercialization of her religion to be all pointy-hatted with wands and warts, but it amused her. She thought, at the least, that Padfoot could get a kick out of it. _

_And maybe Willow could use that as an 'in' to learn about his magic. _

_She had promised herself that she wouldn't push - and she wouldn't - but she was still dying of curiosity to learn why his magic felt different from her own._

_Of course… She wondered idly if maybe it was wrong of her to want to know more about his magic. It was only recently that she had finally been able to understand and communicate with her own brand of magic. What if his style was more exciting or seductive or dangerous somehow? She still felt like a ticking time bomb. What if he was able to set her off? What if by exposing herself to him she harmed her recovery process - she was supposed to be in isolated mediation and self-reflection right now, after all._

_Heaving out a frustrated sigh, she placed the napkins on the table. Her life just had too many 'what ifs'. She felt like Indecisive Gal when it came to decisions, big or small. Well, okay, not that she had ever been Focused Decision-Maker Gal._

_Except of course when she decided to embrace dark magic and destroy the world. That sure was one hell of a decision._

_She sat down for a moment and rubbed her temples gently. Okay, she had screwed up. Majorly so. But sometimes she wondered if it was really going to haunt her for the rest of her life. That thought scared her - that she would feel like this forever. Having that ribbon of guilt tightening around her chest constantly made her heart burn with remorse. And while she had healed her magic and was able to perform some things, she was far too scared to ever do major magic again. _

_It was moments like now that that she wished her Baby was back here with her. She needed to be held, to be allowed to forget her pain - if only for a moment. _

_She had thought, in the back of her mind, that maybe having a houseguest for a few days would allow her to take a mental break; to maybe selfishly pretend she was a normal twenty-two year old girl for a while. Unfortunately, Sirius kept bringing a lot of her darker thoughts to the forefront with his innocent questions._

_Like asking for her autograph. She got. It was a joke. Clearly. But instantly her mind went back to the time in Sunnydale right before Giles brought her here. _

_Willow had been on a nighttime walk, just wanting to get out of the house for a while since the awkward moments were getting too hard to bear. Somehow, she had found herself in front of Willy's. Not that she had meant to go there - consciously anyways. But once there she decided that a nice, hard drink would be real good right about then. Then, while she was drinking she got approached by two nasty-looking demons and a vampire wanting to buy her shots. They had thought she was a freaking rock star, all aflutter over the 'Dark One', and the vampire even *asked her for her autograph*._

_It had taken far too much willpower - especially then, right after the Event - to walk away, but she had._

_Even though her dark side had wanted to destroy every evil thing in that place, Willy included at the time. _

_The oven buzzed, breaking her reverie. Willow took ten deep breaths to calm herself and retrieved the pizza. _

"_Padfoot! Dinner's ready!" she called as she began cutting slices. After waiting a minute for him, she left to find him, in case he hadn't heard her._

_Actually, where had he gone? He had put his clothes in the washer thirty minutes ago. _

_Willow scanned the rest of the house- the spare bedroom that she had given him for the next couple nights, the small study, and then she finally walked down the basement._

_Her eyebrows rose of their own accord as she took in the sight before her._

_Padfoot was dimly lit by the over-hanging bulb, looked frustrated as he muttered and pointed a stick towards the washing machine that was oozing soapy liquid. He kicked his foot forward, from the pool of water where he stood, and shook the stick. "C'mon, you sodding, broken thing! Work!" He then declared something - it sounded like Latin to her ears - and waved the stick again._

_She was torn between giggling at the mess he had, again, made and snatching that stick to inspect it._

"_Padfoot?" she asked with a grin. "Having some more problems?"_

_He instantly turned as he heard her and pocketed the stick. "Problems? Me? No, not really. Nothing I can't handle, anyway," he stated with a charming smile._

_Willow giggled as she walked towards him, being very careful to stay past the edge of the puddle. "Really? Cause it looks you're going for shower number two today." _

_He shrugged nonchalantly and his smile turned sheepish. "Hey, its not everyday a guy gets warm water. I thought, hey, why not take another bath?"_

"_Well, then, by all means, go ahead. Maybe I'll step upstairs and give you some privacy." Her earlier thoughts of Padfoot flew back at her - how he was 'hot in that gee-I-just-want-to-bathe-him kinda way.' Willow had a horrible urge to do that right now._

_But that would be wrong._

_All kinds of wrong._

_Mostly, because she was gay!_

…_Right?_

_His eyebrow raised and he shot her a flirtatious look. "Well, now, you don't *have* to give me any privacy," he teased._

_Again, she rolled her eyes. Because, quite honestly, she wasn't sure how to respond when he flirted with her. It was slightly weird, on account of him crashing in her house, and being an older, mysterious man who was quite possibly homeless. Then again, it was slightly fun, because he *was* an older, mysterious man who also happened to be attractive, in that Aragorn-sorta way._

_Not to mention, she didn't take his words seriously because there was something about him that made her think he was a natural born flirt - even if he was out of practice._

"_As a gracious host, I think I'll do just that. Besides," she added with a smirk as she gestured to his soaked pants, "there's no way I want to end up looking like you."_

"_Is that right?" he asked slowly. _

"_Yup," she answered back as she went to turn off the washer and fixed the problematic device. Finished, she turned back to him with an amused smile._

_And got soapy liquid splashed on the front of her shirt. A cry of outraged indignation went through her._

"_Now you look like me," Padfoot laughed satisfactorily._

"_You- you - Arrgh!" She gave him her 'pouty' face, in order to make him feel bad. "Look at me! I invite you into my home, and then you take advantage of me and get me all wet!"_

_His laughs stopped with a shocked face. "Uh…" he trailed off as he observed his damage. "Um, ah." He shook his head in a stunned sorta way. "Uh, sorry, terribly sorry," he finally managed while Willow gave him an odd look. _

'_What was his deal?_' she wondered.

"Dinner?" he said with a squeak and then cleared his throat. "Dinner's ready, you said?" he added in his normal tone.

"Yeah… It's upstairs." She continued staring at him for his sudden and weird apology.

Then as she thought on it, she realized why he had reacted that way. Open Mouth, insert foot, and all that. She felt her cheeks start to flush, but then she realized just how funny Sirius' reaction was.

Willow couldn't help but torture him a little more, not when it was rather amusing. She masked her face back into the clueless one she had previously and added, "before we eat though, we better get you out of those pants - and me out of this shirt."

"Wha-What?" he stammered with a strange look on his face - and she could have sworn he gulped.

"Hello?" Willow waved her hand in front of his face. "Someone's letting me stay here. I don't want us to get water marks on the floor," she commented as she shook her head.

"Honestly, did you really think it was okay for us to get everything in the house wet? This isn't a cave, after all. I think I might have some oversized sweats upstairs that you can borrow until your clothes are better. Then we can eat."

"Oh, yeah. Of course. Water marks. That would be bad. Definitely that," he mumbled as he walked up the stairs.

Willow grinned wickedly as she followed him up. Padfoot was turning out to be an interesting houseguest, at the very least.

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A/N:

Review, por favor! Muchisimas gracias!


	5. I Am Serious

**Chapter 5: I Am Serious.**

A/N: If you read the previous chapter before 12:30am, then go back and re-read the last couple paragraphs real quick. I changed that part slightly (sorry!), thanks to the comment by rosalindmarie. If you read it after that, then never mind and continue onward!

* * *

Sirius felt rather strange walking around in the maroon sweatpants and black t-shirt that Willow had loaned him. He rather missed his wizarding robes. Muggle clothing was always strange, and this outfit certainly was no different. Especially since the shirt had a giant picture of a silly cartoon dog on the front.

Of course, he couldn't have stopped himself from wearing it even if he had better clothes hidden away somewhere - there was no way he could have said no to anything Willow may have asked him earlier, thanks to the laundry room incident.

Most of the time, Sirius didn't reflect on life too much. In fact, he mentally tried to stay as far away from real life as he could. When he was in Azkaban the only reason he had even kept his sanity was because he had known he was innocent; since it hadn't been a happy thought the dementors couldn't take it away from him. Therefore, he had been unable to ever really think of any happy thoughts or fantasies while he had been there.

But now, after being back and confident knowing that those most important to him trusted him - Harry, Remus, and Dumbledore - he was starting to realize what he missed from his previous life.

And just tonight, down in the basement, he realized just how much he missed women.

'_In some ways_', he thought with a smirk, '_it's almost best that James isn't here to make fun of me for not 'getting any' in thirteen years._'

Of course, that would have been the perspective of the old James. The married version of James hadn't been as much fun - which Sirius did understand up to a point - but a year into his marriage and James was already following Lily's encouragement in finding Sirius a 'nice, decent, funny girl that he could get serious with.' Of course, Lily had found her work to be cut out for her - seeing that he had considered himself already 'Sirius' enough and by no means did he need to be tied down to a woman to be more so.

Even if, perhaps, he had always secretly envied what James and Lily had… But he had never thought he would ever be that lucky to find 'The One', like James did. Hence, his refusal to date exclusively.

"Padfoot, pizza's on the over," Willow informed as he walked in.

He thanked her and sat down across from the witch with his plate. He was also thankful that she had changed out of her soaked blouse so he wouldn't be embarrassingly distracted, like earlier.

Mind you, he had not meant to create any type of reaction like he had - he had just been goofing around. Unfortunately he had severely underestimated just how long he had gone without being in the presence of a woman, and a pretty one at that.

Not to mention, those things that she had said! He almost could not have believed those words came out of her mouth! It practically made his stomach curl just thinking about it. It was even sexier that she didn't seem to understand what she had said - very innocent.

'_Innocent is right, you old perv,' his conscience reprimanded him. 'She's way too young for you. Besides, you can't bloody stay in her home as her guest and mentally undress her like that_.'

Sirius inwardly frowned. His conscience sounded a lot like Moony, who had always served as the conscience of the Marauders back in school. His old friend would certainly never be rash enough to think such thoughts towards a younger woman.

"How's the pizza?" Willow broke into his thoughts.

He grinned. "Excellent! It's been years since I've had some!"

She laughed at his exuberance and shook her head. "Must be a British thing. I know in America it's practically illegal to not go without pizza. My friend Xander says its one of the basic food groups."

Sirius didn't enjoy hearing Xander brought up again.

"Practically illegal? I'll tell you what's practically illegal - this shirt," he cracked as he tugged it. "This dog has got to be one of the goofiest things I've ever seen."

Willow paused and stared at him. "Obviously you never looked in the mirror, pre-shower," she jabbed coolly with a smirk.

"Ouch," he said with a shrug and playful smile. "Got me there," he admitted.

"Besides, how can you *not* like Scooby Doo? That's like, un-American." She frowned. "Okay, obviously you are automatically un-American. Well, I'm sure it's very un-British as well. Are you seriously saying that you don't know who Scooby-Doo is?"

Sirius let out a choked laugh. Ah, he missed the days at Hogwarts where he would pun his name at least once a day, much to the exasperation of his professors. "I am serious," he replied with a beaming smile.

"Whoa, mister. That's bad news bears. I'm not sure if Amelia has any dvds here but there is some satellite. We might have to catch an episode."

"So you're a big fan, I guess? Is that way you have him on a shirt?" he asked, confused. He never paid a lot of attention to Muggle things growing up - couldn't, in his house.

She pursed her lips and waved her hands around uncertainly. "Sorta. I mean, I like him, but it's really more of an inside joke. Xander actually got me that shirt."

Again?

"It was back when we were in high school, sort of a graduation gift to all of us. He got me, Buffy, Oz, Giles, and Cordelia these matching shirts. Of course, I think Cordy probably stuck it in the farthest reaches of her closet, along with Giles. But the rest of us would wear it from time to time, just for kicks."

He felt better hearing that she was part of a group of friends and that this Xander kid just happened to be a part of it as well. Not to mention, her face glowed when she talked about her friends. It was a nice change.

Sure, he knew that she had invited him in because she pitied him and had spent most of today being happy around him, but she didn't realize that Sirius had been watching her for a little over a week. While living in that cave he observed her often - just to see when he could get food, of course - and he's seen her in a trance so deep it was almost catatonic, he's seen her weeping uncontrollably on her walks, and he's seen the moments where she would have breakdowns that resulted in her screaming, crying, or laughing - sometimes all at once.

So he knew. He knew that she was broken. It was why it made him so happy that he could make her smile and laugh.

"So what is the inside joke?" he asked.

She smiled. "If I told you, I would have to kill you."

He cocked an eyebrow. "I liked to live dangerously," he said in a hushed voice. Mostly he just wanted to listen to her talk - he missed the sound of another human being's voice.

And she did have rather a nice voice.

* * *

I 3 Reviews

And tell me, do you like the shorter chapter but frequent updates thing? Usually my chapters range from 3,000-6,000 words, but this story felt like it needed to be different so I thought I'd test it out.

Thanks for reading :D


	6. All Because of That Bloody Stupid Scooby

**Chapter 6: All Because of That Bloody Stupid Scooby Shirt!**

"You like to live dangerously, huh?" she said with a smile as she eyed him.

Willow pondered how much to tell Padfoot about the Scoobies. He obviously knew about magic so it was possible that he knew about the things that went bump in the night. Or, at least, he wouldn't be surprised. But she still didn't really know him and while he seemed like a 'good guy' it's not like she was the best judge.

Then again, it wasn't like she had *Xander's* luck. Besides, she would leave out anything too bad, like Dawn's keyness and such.

"Well, in the cartoon Scooby-Doo is a dog who travels along side a group of teenagers who solve mysteries in a hippie van called the Mystery Machine. Freddie is the good-looking leader guy and Daphne is his pretty counter-part, Velma is the bookworm girl, and Shaggy is Scooby's owner who also capable of eating his weight in junk food. They basically go from town to town figuring out paranormal mysteries - like vampires and ghosts - that always result in being some irate adult masquerading for his own sinister purposes."

"And that applies to you how?" asked a perplexed Padfoot.

Willow smiled. When his face scrunched up in confusion like that, he looked sort of adorable and younger somehow.

"Well, that's basically what my friends and I do. Except the there's no irate adults playing dress-up."

His jaw dropped. "Wait, are you telling me that you and your friends hunt vampires and ghosts? By yourselves?"

"Yup. We pretty much make a living hunting and taking down evil supernatural things. Vampires, demons, bad magical people, zombies, spirits - heck, even the occasional hell-god. We're not always alone though - we do work with other groups sometimes." She thought of the Council and the Initiative but she didn't want to bring them up. That might be more than he needed to know.

She frowned at his paled face. "Uh-oh, I should have known you would have freaked out. It is kind of crazy. But it's not as bad as it sounds. Well, usually not," she said upon further reflection. "There are definite risks, but that's life. Risky and all that."

Padfoot jerked up and his chair clattered to the floor. Perspiration beaded his brow and his eyes were wide with fright.

"What's wrong?" she asked, confused beyond belief. "It's not that big of a deal. We just do what we have to do."

Jeez, she would have thought he would have had an Oz-like reaction, just taking the information at face-value and accepting it.

He shook his head vigorously and pulled out that stick again to point it at her face. "I should have known, I should have known. How could I be so stupid?" he muttered.

Willow threw her arms up, shocked by his sudden transformation. His eyes had a manic gleam to them and he was shaking all over. "Padfoot, listen, I'm not sure what your little stick is, but please don't point it at me."

Then her stomach dropped. Oh Goddess, he knew who she was now. Earlier she had thought maybe he had known, but she had dismissed it after their easy-going conversations. But now he knew, clearly.

She *never* should have said anything about the Scoobies. Willow doubted there were many groups of teenagers in California that fought the forces of darkness - obviously he had heard of them.

And if he had, he knew who the witch was in the group.

The one who had tried to destroy the world.

The one who had killed a man.

The Dark One.

"Do you think I am a fool? Stop with the innocent act!"

"I'm not- I'm not," she tried to explain that she wasn't doing any act, but she couldn't. He was right, she was no longer innocent.

"I can't believe you invited me in here, that you allowed me to think I was safe for a night, when in reality you were hiding that from me!" he spat.

"No! I didn't mean to hide it from you!" She shook her head and had to hold back tears. She had faced the awkward tension between her friends, the constant side glances of Giles, the penetrating stares of the coven, but this? She barely knew the man but his reaction hurt almost as much.

Which was A Lot.

"Where are the others? I won't be taken down without a fight!" he declared, eyes darting about wildly.

"What?" she asked in a puzzled tone. "There are no others, it's just me. And I don't want to 'take you down' or anything like that - I swear!"

"Lies," he sneered, and she was frightened by the way his features twisted. He didn't look like Padfoot anymore; instead he looked like a crazed animal. A hand yanked through his shoulder-length dark hair nervously.

He began backing up slowly, glancing around quickly along the way. As he reached the back door that led out of the kitchen he shook his head sadly. "I just want to be left alone," he whispered forlornly. "Tell your people that, tell the Ministry that. I didn't do it." Padfoot sighed. "When You-Know-Who returns, the world will know the truth about Peter and I. Until then," he voice hardened, "please sod off."

Swishing his stick he intoned, "Stupify!" and a jet of red light hit her in the chest, causing her to fly backwards into the wall.

When she had regained consciousness, Padfoot was gone.

And he left her with a splitting headache and a bucket load of questions.

Such as: What the heck was the Ministry? Who in the hell was You-Know-Who and why is he returning? Who was Peter?

And most importantly: Who really was Padfoot and did he really, honest to Goddess, just use a magic wand??

~*~*~*~*~

Sirius was seriously distressed as he raced through the woods back to Buckbeak. His eyes darted like a field mouse racing from a hawk, hoping to elude the swoop of talons. It felt like the days right after his escape from Azkaban, all over again.

Merlin, he was an idiot! He had let down his guard - thinking that this Willow girl could be trusted. Obviously it had been a ruse all along! She and her friends - the 'Scoobies', he thought darkly - were bounty hunters of some sort and Willow had specifically mentioned that they went after bad wizards.

He knew Aurors worked with other ministries but he had never expected that they would stoop so low as to order Muggle bounty hunters after him. She had even mentioned they worked with other groups, clearly taunting him during their conversation.

Dammit. This is what he got for stating that he liked to 'live dangerously', all because he had wanted to know about that bloody stupid Scooby shirt!

"Buckbeak," he called in a low voice once he reached the cave.

His friend approached and gave him a critical eye. Sirius, as always, bowed before he began. "That witch is with them, my friend. We've got to get out of here before reinforcements arrive."

Buckbeak screeched angrily - whether it was from the fact that the Aurors were coming or because Sirius had been stupid enough to let himself get distracted by a pretty face, he didn't know.

Although, knowing Buckbeak, it was probably the latter.

Sirius fetched his emergency supply sack from the cave and jumped onto Buckbeak's back. "Let's go North, for now. We'll find refuge in the mountains up there."

Buckbeak made a noise of annoyance. "I'm *sure* we won't see any Giants like last time," he reassured as they set off.

As they passed overhead, he stared sadly down at Willow's cottage. It hurt - her betrayal. He had really started to care for her. She was nice, decent, and funny, not to mention attractive. It was too bad she was also trying to send him back to the Ministry, where they would certainly bestow the Dementor's Kiss on him.

Sirius grunted angrily. He would push her out of his mind and make sure to never to let his guard down again. He had too many things on his agenda - mainly that Lily and James still deserved their revenge against Peter and Harry still needed his godfather.

He glanced down at himself as an extra cold breeze shook through his clothes. His nose scrunched with revulsion.

Although right now Sirius' top priority would be to get rid of this ridiculous Muggle clothing and burn this sodding Scooby shirt.

* * *

**A/N:**

So, I have to say, things went much differently than I was planning originally, but certain things clicked right for me. As always, please let me know what you think.

As for the current readers and reviewers-- Thank you so much. You are definitely keeping me enthused about this particular project and wanting to provide updates.

And special thanks to cupquake for rec'ing it; I am most flattered : )


	7. Intro to the Wizarding World 101

**Chapter 7: Intro to the Wizarding World 101**

Willow winced at the bright mid-morning sunlight streaming through her kitchen windows and took another gulp of steaming coffee. Sleep had effectively eluded her last night and she was feeling tired and irritable - hence the deliciousness of coffee today.

It was like she was unable to block out last night's confrontation with Padfoot. Not a word had escaped her fervent analyzing, although she sadly was still just as confused, maybe even more so now.

It just didn't make sense. Okay, she could understand that he was freaked out by her occasional black-haired self. She would probably have felt the same if she had been in his shoes. But why on earth would he say those last words? She was supposed to tell 'her' people and the ministry that 'he didn't do it' and when somebody returned everyone would know the truth about him and Peter.

She was starting to wonder if they had even been talking about the same thing.

Obviously he was on the run and living in the wild - could he have thought she was after him? That made sense.

Regardless of all the 'whys' and 'maybes' of his reaction, she was still feeling hurt by it. The jerk hadn't even let her explain! She wished she could have tied him down and told him the whole story about how she is not longer evil, but noooo, he just had to start jumping to conclusions and freaking out that she was going to capture/kill him!

Idiot.

She had half a mind to find him, just so she could yell at him and quite possibly throw things.

More so, she had no idea why it was frustrating her so much. She had known the guy for half a freaking day. Yes, she had enjoyed his company. He made her smile and had a fun rakish grin that she had come to enjoy. And yeah, he had definitely made her question her switch in sexuality preference. But still…

She missed him. And it made her stomach feel icky knowing that he was out there afraid of her now - especially when he had no reason to.

That was it. Willow didn't care if she *was* supposed to be in the isolated stage of her treatment. She needed to see Giles. And Amelia too.

Before she went even crazier.

~*~*~*~*~

Sitting nervously on the plush couch in her mentor's living room, Willow gingerly took a sip of tea. She had always been a big coffee fan - even if her friends had frowned on her on the hyper results it sometimes produced - but after her extended stay she was becoming quite the tea fan as well.

"So Willow, what have we done to extract such a nice surprise visit from you?" Amelia said in her light brogue that had elements of the 'proper British woman' tone. The Devon Coven leader, who looked to be in her mid-sixties, had her gray-streaked hair lying in waves over her shoulders and she was staring at Willow with concerned green eyes.

"Yes, Willow, you sounded rather anxious on the phone earlier today. Is everything alright at the cottage?" Giles inquired as peered over the rims of his glasses.

Setting her cup down, she looked at each of them. "I'm fine - mostly. But something did happen at the cottage."

Giles looked alarmed, but the serene expression that Amelia possessed never left her face. Thinking of it, Willow had never seen that expression ever leave her face. It was probably why Willow had been paired with her, since she had such a calm demeanor.

"Ok, well I met this man yesterday. Not just any man though - I had caught him stealing out of my pantry. Anyways, I had placed a protective spell - the Creeper Catching Creeping Vine, remember Amelia? - and he had escaped through magic. But it felt *way* different than anything I had ever felt, not like earth magic at all, so I followed him and then got attacked by a hippogriff-"

"A hippogriff?" exclaimed a flustered Giles. "Here?" He began mumbling to himself as he cleaned his glasses.

Willow held up a hand to stop him. "Yes, a hippogriff. Anyways, said hippogriff was going to attack me when this man, who called himself Padfoot, stopped him. And it was obvious that Padfoot was living in a cave and starving - plus he smelled bad and looked like he never bathed - so I offered to let him stay over at the cottage, especially since that big thunderstorm was coming through."

Willow had thought her mentor's expression could never change. She was wrong.

"What in the name of the Goddess were you thinking, Willow?" she cried as her eyebrows shot up to her forehead. "You *never, ever* invite a strange man into your home, especially one that can do magic!"

Giles sighed as he took off his glasses and rubbed his temples. "Yes, Willow, what *were* you thinking?"

Willow wanted to scream. Okay, yes, maybe that wasn't the smartest move, but she *was* an adult. She wasn't stupid, nor needed to be looked after like a child.

She breathed in a deep breath. Well, okay, she supposed they had been looking after her like a child all summer; she had needed it.

"I felt bad for him, alright? And I didn't get any evil vibes off him at all."

"Still," Giles began in his official 'Watcher' voice, "if he had been evil, you may not have been able to fight him off. Your magic is still weakened and any defensive spells you may have tried could have gone horribly wrong."

"Okay, I get it," she stated, rather petulantly she supposed. "But that isn't why I wanted to talk to you two. You see, I told him about life back home and how my friends and I fought all sorts of supernatural baddies and he freaked out. I think he may have made the connection between my, um, past activities," she hurriedly threw out, "and realized who I was. Anyways, he got really frightened and left."

Amelia gave her a kind look. "My dear, that is to be expected. Redemption is not an overnight process and it is quite doubtful that many in the supernatural community know of your allegiance reversion. You cannot fault the man for that."

"I know, I know. It's just… That wasn't it. Before he left he said some weird things and I think our line of communication got crossed somehow. He started asking me 'where the others were?' and seemed to think I had back-up to capture him or kill him or something."

"Likely he thought you did not work alone, that perhaps you had aligned yourself with others since Sunnydale," Giles offered helpfully.

"Okay, yeah. But then he also said something about 'You-Know-Who' returning and the truth coming out about him and some guy named Peter and something about wanting to be left alone and he didn't do something. And that's not it! Before he left he said something like 'stupid' or 'stoopy' and used a freaking magic wand to do a spell that knocked me out!"

Amelia gasped and Giles turned to her in concern. Willow was especially concerned about her reaction - her faced looked as white as a sheet and her eyes were wide with fright.

"Amelia?" she asked hesitatingly.

The Coven Leader took a deep, shaky breath. "Are you sure that's what he said, Willow?"

"Yes… Why?" Willow's eyes narrowed. That was two times in just a few minutes that her mentor had reacted sp strongly, when normally she was so calm.

"He said that You-Know-Who would return? How did he say it - was it a threat? Or the ramblings of a mad man?"

Willow squirmed. This was giving her the belly rumblings. "Not really either of those. He more or less stated it."

Amelia closed her eyes and shook her head. "My dear Rupert, are you familiar with the Wizarding World?"

Giles frowned. "During my early years at the Council I had heard mention of it - I believe we had a married couple rumored to be a witch and wizard from there who worked with us - but I do not know much."

Amelia frowned. "That is because 'Muggles' are forbidden to know about it." Her tone didn't hide just how stupid she thought that idea was.

Nodding her head, Willow spoke. "Yeah, he mentioned that! He said that he didn't think I would notice him stealing because I was a 'Muggle' and later he said something about the Wizarding World. But I've never heard anything about it before."

"Yes, well. Hmm. Where to start?" Amelia mused out loud. "Essentially there are many kinds of magic in this world but two are the most prevalent. There is earth magic, which is practiced by us, and there are those who are a part of the Wizarding World. These witches and wizards have an inner magical core and they use a wand to focus that magic in order to do spells."

"Of course, outsiders are forbidden to know about the Wizarding World. Long ago their ministries ruled that wizards would live separate from non-magical beings and the communities became secluded. They have their own schools, shopping centers, and even their own government."

"That's so weird," Willow commented. "Why are they all hermit-y?"

Amelia frowned. "Obviously to live life without interference by muggles. But they, mostly, shun even the other magical creatures of the world."

"I daresay, you seem well-versed on the matter, Amelia. How did you come about all this?" Giles questioned.

Amelia gave a half-hearted smile. "Because I was born into it, Rupert. My family is an old pure-blood family, even if all that remain now are my sister and I."

"What? You're like a wizard-witch? But I thought you were a Wiccan?" Willow said in a rush.

"Not quite, my dear. I was born a Squib," she answered as she rolled her eyes. Willow was slightly amused to see her old-fashioned mentor roll her eyes. "That is a word used to identify those of us born to pure-blood wizarding families who have no magical core."

She sighed as she saw their confused looks. "Remember, I told you how the Wizarding community has an aversion to those without magic. Being a Squib is the worst of both worlds - shunned by one and confused by the other. I never went to Hogwarts - that's the magical school in Britain - however I did in my youth discover this very Coven. Actually, my sister did. They had spoken about it in some class and she told my parents this was an opportunity for me to use some magic. She was right - she often is - and I was lucky to have found my home here."

"I had no idea," sputtered an amazed Giles.

"Oh Rupert," she fondly patted his hand and smiled "A girl's got to have some secrets after all."

"Now I know you both have many questions, but I am disturbed by this stranger's talk of bringing You-Know-Who back. Since I am still a pure blood -even if I'm a Squib- I am part of the Wizarding World and thus still can receive The Daily Prophet, which is their local press. Not to mention our coven had it's own involvement against You-Know-Who's forces so long ago. If this stranger was serious about this talk…" Amelia trailed off as her eyes lit up with a realization.

"One moment, please," she said as she went into the other room, leaving Willow and Giles just to stare at each other in baffled silence.

"Here Willow, take a look at this," Amelia ordered in her stern motherly voice as she thrust a newspaper into her lap.

Willow picked it up and gasped. "Oh my gosh, is this real? These pictures are… They're *moving*" she cried in astonishment.

Giles, always a fan of the new and strange, got up to peer over her shoulder. "Astounding," he whispered.

"Yes, yes," Amelia murmured impatiently. "But actually *look* at the pictures. Do you recognize anyone?"

Scanning the front page Willow noticed the large picture that had the word 'WANTED' headlined above it. The man in the picture had stringy dark hair, a gaunt face, and eyes that gleamed with madness. In the picture he was behind a row of bars and clutched them while screaming wildly.

She winced - Willow couldn't believe it. "No," she said quietly.

"Willow?" Giles questioned.

"It's him," she answered reluctantly. "It's Padfoot."

"His real name, my dear, is Sirius Black - a mass murderer and escaped convict."

Amelia frowned again. "This disturbing news of yours must be heard by the right person. Since I'm a Squib and you're not any better, I do not want to entangle us with those blasted Ministry folks. I'll floo my sister and we'll meet with her today to get advice."

Willow stared at Amelia in puzzlement as the woman walked to the fireplace. "You're going to 'floo' her?"

* * *

Being sick is sort of fun because it means I have free time to write… and writing on drugs is fun ;) Just kidding. Not bad drugs, I promise, just the happy healing kind.

Anyways… I'm curious if anyone can guess who Amelia's sister is… I imagine it's fairly obvious…Oh, and expect the couple Giles knew to come up again at some point as well… ;)

And yes, sadness galore for the separation of Willow and Sirius, bur it won't be forever. They're both just too darn cute!

Thoughts? Suggestions? Holler at me :D You, dearest readers, have been supplying with some wonderful comments and excellent suggestions so far that have *really* been giving me some food for thought.

Also… 'Creeper Catching Creeping Vine'? I just have to say that is my new favorite thing I have ever created haha… Or maybe that's just the drugs and my love of alliteration.


	8. Figuring out Floo

**Chapter 8: Figuring out Floo**

"Giles, do you know what the heck 'floo' is?" Willow asked under her breath as Amelia pulled a purple box from behind picture frames that lined the top of the fireplace.

"No idea. I admit, Willow, that I am a novice in these matters. It sounds particularly exciting though - the fact that there's a secret world right underneath our noses!" he said a voice he usually reserved for only his most exciting learning opportunities.

It reminded her of Xander's geeky voice, like when Star Wards was re-released in high school. The poor boy was practically vibrating with excitement for a month before it was released - which she had always thought stemmed from his desire to see Slave Girl Leia on the big screen.

"Now Rupert Giles, don't you dare think about writing any of this into your journals," Amelia chided. "This is classified information and I would hate for the Ministry to discover you're writing down our secrets. They'd Obliviate you in a second."

"I dare say, those blokes would kill me for such a thing?" he asked in an astonished tone.

Amelia laughed. "Oh my Goddess, you make it sound so dramatic, Rupert. No, they would not kill you. That's a standard spell used to obliviate a portion of someone's memory. That's what they do to muggles who have seen too much."

Willow couldn't believe her ears. "You mean... It's standard procedure to modify someone's memory?" she asked in a horrified tone. Yes, Willow had done that before, to Tara and then her friends, but now that she has lived through that dark stage… She just could not imagine that being okay for anyone to do - for it to be standard procedure to invade someone's mind and twist it.

"I'm afraid it is," she sighed. "I oppose many things in my old world, especially as I have grown in my beliefs here with the Coven. Those in the Wizarding community have a very… arrogant view on the supremacy of their way of life and they way they use their magic is much different than ours. For them, they use magic in every aspect of their life, from cooking dinner to cleaning. It's perfectly normal for them to be completely dependent on it. They don't even use electrical items or other conveniences from this world."

So *that* was why Padfoot - er, Sirius - got confused with the stove and washing machine! "Why not?" Willow asked.

"Magic and electricity do not mix, although I am not sure why. Now, simmer down with your questions for one minute while I floo Minerva."

Amelia tossed something that looked like sand into the fireplace and stuck her head dangerously close to the fire. Willow almost jumped out of her seat, but Giles had the sense to grab her arm.

"Minerva McGonagall, Hogwarts!" she shouted.

After a minute the outline of a woman wearing square spectacles and hair drawn in a severe bun appeared in the fire, much to Willow's shock.

"Amelia?" the woman asked crossly. "I am quite busy with paperwork and must chaperone the first weekend visit to Hogsmeade in less than a thirty minutes. We must chat at another time."

"Minerva," she said with an indulgent smile. "You work too much."

The corner of Minerva's lip quirked upwards. "Perhaps. But I am free tonight if you would like to grab a butterbeer. I assume that is the purpose of your floo?"

"Sadly, this isn't a social call. One of my witches," Amelia paused. "Actually, I'm really not sure if it's wise for me to say anything over floo. But it is vitally important. Can we meet you in Hogsmeade?"

Minerva assessed her sister in silence for a moment. "Very well. Shall we meet upstairs in one of Rosmerta's private rooms?" she asked briskly.

"Yes, that will work well. See you in one hour?"

"Very well," Minerva nodded and then she disappeared.

"Alright then," Amelia said as she turned back to Willow and Giles. "We will be leaving shortly."

"Where is this Hogsmeade place?" Giles asked.

Amelia smirked, if that was possible. "Up north in Scotland, near Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizarding, where my sister is a professor. The town is called Hogsmeade and it is a Wizarding only town so I will need to find some robes for the two of you. It would be quite unhelpful if people knew there were muggles in their presence- far too many questions."

"Robes?" Giles asked in a surprised tone as he returned to cleaning his spotless glasses.

"Scotland? But, how are we going to all the way up there? Portal?" Willow wondered out loud.

"Yes, robes," Amelia confirmed to Giles. "And we'll floo our way in - it's quite simple and common place there. You just throw some of the powder into the fire -don't worry, it doesn't burn you- then declare your destination, and you'll wind up there," she explained to Willow.

"Ah- okay," Willow answered, a bit taken aback by the fast pace of unfolding events. Who would have thought by hunting down her pantry thief she would be thrust into a secret Wizarding world and end up jumping through a fire?

* * *

Ah, sorry, A bit shorter than normal but they'll be in Hogsmeade next meeting Prof. McG… And might run into some other HP-verse people…

Holler ;)


	9. Owl Correspondence

**Chapter 9: Owl Correspondence **

**A/N:**

When the this " " precedes and follows a word or sentence, that indicates the writer of the letter cross that part out. (Not really sure the best way to do that, but thought it worked for now)

* * *

Owl Correspondence Between Remus John Lupin and Sirius Black:

Moony-

Have you ever heard of a group called the 'Scoobies'? They're a group of auror-type folks who hunt evil creatures and dark wizards in America. One of them caught up with me last night and I'm pretty she was working for the Ministry - I think so, anyway. She's from California and said the members of the group were named Zander, Giles, Buffy, and Cordelia when they were in high school. Her name was Willow and she's an earth witch, with dark red hair, and she's quite pretty.

-Padfoot

~*~*~*~*~*

Padfoot-

The name sounds familiar from when I was doing research during my Hogwarts tenure. I'll look it up.

-Moony

PS: Can't quite believe you willingly left a pretty woman, whether you were in danger of capture or not. Unless, of course, you were just unsuccessful in your attempts to woo her?

~*~*~*~*~*

Moony-

Bite your tongue, old friend. You know no woman could ever say no to my charming and witty personality, not to mention my good looks.

-Padfoot

PS: Truthfully… Until I discovered her real reason for inviting me in, I was beginning to like her. //I miss her. //

~*~*~*~*~*

Padfoot-

I bet this woman could have said no to your charm and wit.

After a few readings and an owl to Moody, I've found out that the 'Scoobies' is a little-known code name for a group in California that is outfitted by the current Vampire Slayer (Buffy), her Watcher (Mr. Giles), and several friends. Rumors say, however, that Willow is no longer affiliated with them. The witch turned dark several months ago and tried to end the world. The supernatural community is either in awe of her or fearful. Moody was extremely curious why I was inquiring about her - seems she's been labeled by the various Ministries of Magic to be picked up for 'questioning' if found.

So I doubt she was trying to capture you, old friend, if the Ministry has a price on her head.

-Moony.

PS: Of course, it was still smart to leave her regardless - That woman is dangerous. If you know what's good for you, you will stay far away.

~*~*~*~*~*

Moony-

Thanks.

-Padfoot


	10. You Taste Like Strawberries

**Chapter 10: You Taste Like Strawberries **

A/N:

Timeline: So, now that we are beginning to mix in with the HP world I thought it would be best if I set up a timeline for all you hard-cores out there ;)

As I stated previously, Sirius and Willow met in late summer and in BTVS-verse Willow does not return right away at the start of the season, it is actually the 3rd episode.

Thanks to the a href="/timelines/calendars/calendar_"_HP Lexicon_/a I have established a timeline for now - but expect some things to happen differently (for example, thanks to the super popular new Headmistresses Luna all the students get an extra Hogsmeade weekend at the beginning of term! *cheers, especially from the Weasleys*)

_So our current timeline is as follows:_

Monday, Sept. 1-- 1st day of classes at Hogwarts

Friday, Sept. 5-- --Sirius and Willow meet

Saturday, Sept 6-- 1st Hogsmeade weekend

*Note* For now, in case you were wondering, the Triwizard Cup is not announced until the very end of October

Dedication: There are *so* many ideas that reviewers have given me so far, but I really want to thank a href="." AllenPitt/a for all the ideas and sugggestions throughout our e-mails. This chapter is also dedicated to a href="." Methos/a for the A-mazing story art below, 'tis lovely! Also, thanks to Methos I finally checked out the FAQ page to figure out how to insert the art and along the way discovered how to do all the fun, special things like inserting links (although I keep screwing up bolding & italicizing words, boo). Ha, about time- I know ;)

Also, a *very special* thanks to a href="." MistressRed/a , a href="." ivanjedi/a , and a href="." misskat/a for rec'ing this fic! I am very honored that you enjoy this story that much - thank you :D

Fan Art: The lovely fan art below has been created by the talented & amazing Methos (THANK YOU!), which can be found at: a href=".org/Story-11355-149/Methos+Fanart+for+my+favorite+" Fanart for my favorite stories/a

img src=".com/albums/af256/Luna_Del_Cielo/WillowsThief_" class="imageright"

* * *

Willow stared at her reflection in the window and adjusted the front of her forest green robe. She realized with a giggle that she looked the most witchy that she had ever looked. Glancing over to Giles, she saw Amelia fretting over him as he pulled on a black robe.

"Now Rupert, hold on one minute," she clucked like a mother hen. "This front clasp is broken and I just need to adjust it or you'll be flashing everyone."

"Well, I- I will continue to be wearing my jacket and trousers, won't I?" he sputtered. "Don't tell me that wizards pull off a full monty underneath their robes?"

"Oh Rupert, don't be silly. No one does that." Then Amelia caught Willow's eye and winked. "Except the Scottish wizards, of course. Shall I give you a demonstration?" she added in a purposeful thickening of her Scottish brogue.

"What? Ah, no, that won't be-" Then Giles realized that she was poking fun at him and the two witches in the room burst into laughter. "Necessary," he finished dryly.

"What a shame," Amelia mock-lamented before changing the subject. "Now, when you jump in, remember to shout 'Hogsmeade'. That will take you directly to The Three Broomsticks, the popular pub owned by my old friend Rosmerta. And try not to breathe in any of the floo powder or you'll be coughing for an hour. Nasty stuff, it is. I'll go first, then Willow, and then Rupert."

Amelia likely noticed Willow's lackluster agreement and gave her an encouraging smile. "Willow dear, it's perfectly safe, I assure you."

"Oh, yeah, I know. I completely trust you, Amelia. I just, um, fire? Jumping into fire?" She shrugged. "It gives me the heebie jeebies," she admitted.

"Watch me. You'll be fine." With that Amelia threw the floor powder into the fireplace, stepped in, and shouted "Hogsmeade!" With a flash of flames she was gone.

"Er, Giles, you sure you don't want to go next?" Willow asked hopefully, looking for any way to put it off.

Giles eyed the fireplace skeptically. "Ah, that's alright, Willow. Ladies first and all."

"Chicken," she muttered as she reached for the powder and threw some into the fireplace.

She began stepping in and shouted "Hogs-" when her skull cracked against the overhanging bricked piece of the fireplace. "Oh, my head!" she exclaimed as she fell further into the fire.

The flames flashed up to consume her and for an instant she felt a strange sense of weightlessness. Then she was thrown out of a fireplace and tumbled across a strange floor. "Oh jeez," she muttered as she rubbed the top of her head with gentle fingers. "That was more painful then I imagined. With a few coughs, she dusted the ash off her robes and stood up.

Only to notice that she was in a bar that looked a lot like Willy's with about a dozen people -well, some of them looked a bit more demon-y than people-y - staring at her.

"Uh, hi?" she greeted self-consciously. With a grimace she took in her surroundings. The large room was dimly lit by the small amounts of light that were able to push past layers of grime on the windows and the floor was coated with dust - Willow would have thought that in a culture that uses magic to do everything, someone could have gone all 'Fantastia' with the cleaning. What was it with bad guy bars that made them think not cleaning was okay?

Now that the shock of her arrival had past, the patrons had returned to their previous activities of talking, drinking, and playing cards.

Willow wondered idly if there were any kittens involved with the bets.

She began marching up towards the barkeeper in order to figure out where she was. It was doubtful that she was in The Three Broomsticks, judging by the fact that Amelia was too classy to drink here and that Rosmerta the barkeep was probably not a tall, whip-thin, grouchy-looking old man with a long grey beard, like the man standing behind the bar.

Willow sniffed and made a disgusted face. Another reason why she knew she was in the wrong place: This bar smelled vaguely like a farm animal or something. No way would Amelia send her here.

Lost in her thoughts, Willow unexpectedly bumped into a tall, broad-shouldered man who almost fell backwards before she grabbed his arm. "Oops!" she said in a surprised tone. She flashed the man a small smile. "Sorry about that," she apologized.

His pale face broke out into a sneer. "Do *watch* where you are going. And take your filthy hand off me," he ordered coldly as he brushed off his robe.

Then he gave her a closer look and, if it was possible, his sneer grew in size. "Judging by your looks and your overall clumsiness, I bet you're another Weasley brat. You females must hatch your young, there are so many of you."

Taken aback by his harsh words, her jar dropped. Who did this guy think he was? Her eyes narrowed as he pushed back his shoulder-length platinum locks. He had a pompous air about him and while the other patrons looked dirty and disheveled, his clothes looked to be made with expensive fabric and he carried a cane with a fancy silver tip.

With his attitude and hair - plus being British and all - she wouldn't be surprised if he was distantly related to Spike.

"Listen, mister, for one, I said I was sorry. Jeez, do you want a hand-written scroll of apology delivered by my manservant? Second, I don't know if you just called me a weasel or something, but you should really learn some manners."

Willow almost gasped as his grey eyes flashed angrily. The color of his eyes was just like Sirius', except where Sirius' were warm and bright, this man's eyes were cold and cruel.

Willow winced inwardly as she realized that the eyes are never a true reflection of the soul, unlike the popular saying. After all, how could Sirius have looked at her with those warm, caring, and sometimes amused eyes, when all along he was a mass-murderer?

"Listen here, little girl," he hissed as he leaned in close to her. "You should-" He faltered as he breathed in deeply, and then his eyes widened in surprise. He licked his pale lips slowly - as if he were savoring something.

"You taste like strawberries," he murmured softly, eyes heavy-lidded with pleasure, and he raised his hand as if to touch her.

Willow stiffened as his words shocked her to the core. All parts of her seemed to shut down with his statement as she was instantly transported to the worst memories of her psyche.

Like all her memories from this moment in her life, the memory was tinted by darkness, and she found herself once again staring at the wild-haired, emaciated form of Rack, her former magical dealer.

He had slithered around her, eying her with admiration and longing. Twice before Rack had administered her drug of choice and in return took a little bit. All the while Rack was in charge, Lord of his own private den of desire and decadence.

But he was no longer in charge at that point.

"When you first came to me," he had whispered, "you were just a little slip of girl." He had laughed then and she had been so amused by this pitiful wisp of a man attempting to play King to her Queen.

"Look at you now. All growed up. Full of dark juice. And you still taste like strawberries. Only now... you're ripe."

But while she may have been ripe, he was the one ready to be picked.

And boy, she had picked his body free of magic until there was nothing left - A fitting end, she had thought at the time, for his life.

Willow took a shaky breath and returned to her present circumstances. Quickly, she stepped back from the wizard and slapped his hand away. "Do not touch me," she growled and she felt a surge of her magic flow through her.

Whatever had be-spelled the man ended and he appraised her with wide, cautious eyes. "Forgive me," he said in a voice that was as smooth and thick as velvet. "I do not know what came over me."

"Yeah, well, just get away from me. I've got to find some Broomsticks place," she muttered, essentially freaked out by who ever this man was.

"Do you mean The Three Broomsticks?" he asked in a polite voice. "I can take you there."

Willow paused. She desperately wanted to get out of this place and away from this man, but she did want to hurry up and find her friends.

"I apologize for my earlier comments," he said quickly, sensing that she was going to say no. "I'm a bit, well, there's no excuse really," he admitted forlornly, "but I'm not quite myself today. But I would be pleased to escort you to your destination and get you away from this riff-raff. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lucius Malfoy. And you are?"

Willow didn't want to give him her name. Little apology or not, the guy gave her the wiggins with his Rack impersonation. But she just wasn't very good at being rude and darn it all that her parents had turned her into a hard-wired polite person!

"Willow Rosenberg," she said quickly, half-heartedly hoping he would forget it as quick as she said it. "And where is that Broomsticks place? I'm rather late."

His lips curled into a wide smile and she thought she saw a glint in his eyes for a moment - although that could have been her imagination. "Right this way, Ms. Rosenberg."

* * *

A/N:

Flashback is from S6, episode "Two To Go"

Likey? Dislikey? Comments & ideas? Please holler -- everyone reviewing has been giving me some AMAZING ideas. Thank you!


	11. And Your Enemies Closer

**Chapter 11: Keep Your Friends Close, and Your Enemies Closer**

**Dedication**: I love ALL of my reviewers -Thank You! - but I really wanted to give a special shout-out to the people who have reviewed every single chapter thus far- Thank you! This one is for you: a href="." Dmitri/a, a href="." AriaDragoncrest/a, a href="." KzintiKiller/a , and a href="." POTENTIALlyAwesome/a.

* * *

Lucius opened the door of the bar and swept his hand forward to indicate that she should go first.

'Well, wasn't he the perfect little gentleman?' she thought wryly.

As she walked outside she glanced up and saw the establishment's sign above the door. 'Hog's Head' was written above a picture of a bloodied pig's head leaking blood all over a white napkin.

'_Ew, gross,_' she thought disdainfully. No wonder this was were the local baddies came to play.

Speaking of local baddies, Willow thought it was interesting that Lucius had been a rude, arrogant jerk until he 'tasted' her and suddenly he was apologizing and acting like a sweetheart. He had blamed his behavior on 'not being himself today', but Willow wasn't buying it.

Heck, a girl didn't grow up on the Hellmouth without some bit of intuition.

No matter, she did need to find Amelia and Giles and at least he seemed better than those unsavory patrons. Besides, she wanted to figure out more about him.

"Are you visiting Hogsmeade, Ms. Rosenberg? I notice that your accent is different. America?" he inquired smoothly with a raise of his brow.

She clasped her hands very lady-like and refrained from telling him -what was that phrase English people liked? - Oh yeah, to 'sod off'.

"Yes, I'm here for a little while visiting friends. What about you, Mr. Malfoy? Do you live here?" she asked sweetly.

He chuckled softly. "Merlin, no. I live in my family manor in Wiltshire. It is quite a lovely estate, you should make a visit sometime." Looking at her, he smiled. "My wife Narcissa loves the company. I'm afraid with our son Draco in school she gets a bit lonely during the school year."

Willow observed many school-age children milling in and out of shops as they were leaving the, presumably, 'bad end' of Hogsmeade. "Your son, Draco, I assume he's a Hogwarts student?" Willow was almost positive that was the place Amelia had named.

Lucius grimaced. "Yes, although I must say that Hogwarts has become decidedly lower-class since I was a student there. The Headmaster is certainly getting on in his years and standards have been dropping. Personally," he sniffed, "I would have preferred to send Draco to Durmstrang - where they know how to deliver a *proper* wizarding education - but Narcissa was adamant that the boy stay close to home."

He gave her a sidelong glance. "Where did you attend school?"

"Ah." She thought hurriedly but had no idea what to say. "In America, of course." Which was totally true - It was his fault for not being specific.

He started to speak again but she interrupted him. "So are you in Hogsmeade to see your son? I've noticed there are a lot of kids out here."

Lucius pursed his lips and hesitated. "Yes, of course. Family is important, after all. Anyways, The Three Broomsticks is up ahead, who is it that you are visiting?" he asked.

What a persistent man.

Luckily, as they walked past a shop titled 'Zonko's Joke Shop', Willow noticed some movement in a side street. "Hold on, Lucius. I think some of the kids are getting into a fight,' she informed as she moved closer.

Years of her and Xander being picked on by Cordelia and others made Willow firmly against ignoring any signs of bullying. No way was she the sort of person to look the other way.

A group of young - maybe fourteen or fifteen year olds - were facing each other in the street. On one side stood a boy with white blond hair and two large, dark haired boys - they stood on each side of him almost like they were bodyguards. Facing them was a boy with black, messy hair, a boy with red-hair, and a girl with frizzy brown hair.

"Oh Potter, what are you doing here? Don't you know that Hogsmeade weekends can only be approved by a parent? How'd yours manage that since they're dead and all?" the blond-haired boy sneered.

Willow gasped - What a cruel thing to say! And judging by his hair, she bet she knew who his father was.

"Oi! Shut your mouth you stupid git!" snarled the red-haired boy.

"Oh Weasley, how cute that you're so protective of your boyfriend," the other boy laughed.

"Shut your mouth, Malfoy. Shouldn't you go primp in the bathroom? I think I see a hair out of place," the messy black-haired boy retorted darkly.

The blond, Malfoy, started to self-consciously touch his hair and then his face twisted into a contemptuous glare. "Oh really, Potter?" he said as he pulled out a stick - a wand, Willow corrected herself.

Willow turned back to give Lucius an exasperated look. "Wow, you got a heck of a kid there, Lucius," she said snidely before she started to walk towards the kids.

"Hey! What's going on here?" she called in her most authoritative voice. She smiled inwardly as Malfoy, Jr. turned and hid his wand behind his back.

"Nothing!" Malfoy, Jr. said quickly. Then his face paled and his eyes widened. "Fa-Father," he stuttered as his eyes registered Lucius.

"Draco," Lucius growled. "What on earth is going on here?"

The three opposing students quietly took a step back after sharing a look.

"Nothing, Father. Just a little conversation," he calmly replied, but his eye twitched nervously.

"Really? And do you always threaten people with wands when you converse with them?" Willow asked archly.

"Blimey!" The red-head kid said in a hushed voice to his friends. "She's an American!"

"Well, um, no. It wasn't like that." Then Draco's face twisted. "It's their bloody fault anyway - Potter was being his typical prat self!"

"Draco! You will watch your tone when speaking to the lady," his father sternly ordered, real anger evident in his voice.

Draco's mouth snapped shut.

"Sorry, ma'am," he said quietly, but his eyes blazed with resentment.

Willow frowned. This kid seemed like a combination of Cordy and Spike - stuck-up, had a sense of entitlement, and hated authority.

"Lucius? Is that you?" called a new voice from the corner of the street. "What are you doing here?"

Lucius turned and smiled at the man, whose appearance made her shiver. His sallow complexion, long stringy black hair, and cruel black eyes made Willow feel the need to look up and double check that the sun was still up - this guy completely looked like a vampire.

"Severus," Lucius said warmly. "I was escorting my new friend to The Three Broomsticks when we saw my son and his friends. How are you? I imagine you're playing the role of chaperone today? "

"Unfortunately yes - I have to stay on constant alert so that one of these little idiots doesn't burn the village down," he complained.

Severus snorted as he gave the three kids, the ones that had been arguing with Draco, a cold look. "And let me guess, Potter was up to his old tricks again and causing trouble?" he assumed dryly. "That's five points from Gryffindor, Potter. Now get out of here before I order you back to the castle."

They all let our cries of indignation and Willow released one of her own. "I heard them! The boys were all throwing insults around and this one," her finger jerked to point at Draco, "pulled out his wand to threaten them. Punishing just one of them is an awfully jerky thing to do," she stated harshly.

The kids went silent and the man called Severus slowly turned to stare down his crooked nose at her. Willow could even have sworn she heard tumbleweed rolling past them - the atmosphere was charged with tension like in an old Western film.

"You *dare* to question my disciplinary decision?" he asked frostily in a deep, smooth voice. "Just *who* do you think you are?"

"Ah, tut, tut, my dear friend," Lucius interrupted. "I'm sure nothing was meant by it," he explained lightly to Severus - and his tone allowed for no disagreement.

"Please allow me to introduce you two. Willow, this is Severus Snape, an old family friend and the Potions Master at Hogwarts. Severus, this is Willow Rosenberg and she is visiting from America."

Severus' eyes narrowed and he reluctantly held his hand out. "Pleased to meet you," he said between clenched teeth.

"Likewise," she said with a smirk as she reached for his hand. Lucius Malfoy may be an annoying, arrogant jerk but it *was* kind of fun that he made this Dracula wannabe shut up.

His hand grasped hers firmly and he gasped. With a hiss, he jerked his hand back like it burned and looked at her like she the latest attraction in a freak show. As his black eyes studied her cautiously he whispered, "Who *are* you?"

Willow suddenly realized that all of the kids' eyes were darting nervously between Severus and Willow.

She felt flustered having them stare at her and Severus reacting like this. First Lucius, now him. Jeez, did she have a neon sign above here saying 'Hey! One-Time Evil Gal Here!'

"Don't be rude, Severus," Lucius chided and then flashed Willow a pearly white smile. "I already told you who she was. Willow, are you ready to move on to the pub?"

She glanced at him and then back at the Hogwarts kids before turning her gaze to Severus. "I trust you'll either punish them equally or not at all, Severus?" she asked, unable to leave without assurance that some sense of justice would be carried out.

Severus' lips pressed tightly against each other in a thin line. "Potter! Weasley! Granger! Malfoy! Crabbe! Goyle!" he hissed out angrily. "No points will be taken today, but get out of my sight *now*!"

Without missing a beat, the kids scrambled out of there.

Willow pursed her lips and forced herself to acknowledge Tall, Dark, and Greasy's non-jerky move. "Thank you."

He nodded stiffly and Willow got the impression that she scared him. "Lucius," he said to his friend. "Do keep in touch." With a swish of his cloak, Severus stalked down the street.

"Well, your friend seems nice," Willow said sarcastically.

"Severus is not exactly the social butterfly," Lucius explained with a graceful shrug. "I apologize on his behalf."

"Hmm. Not to mention, your son seemed to lack the same manners you did earlier," she observed matter-of-factly.

Lucius stiffened and he cocked his head towards her as he began leading the way back to The Three Broomsticks. "I do, once again, apologize," he said softly. "I know first impressions are everything and I'm afraid I've sullied your impression of me - but I do hope you will reconsider your opinion of me. I'm not all bad," he added with a charming smile.

Willow stopped and peered at him closely. Grey eyes pleaded with her and he seemed sincere.

But… There was still something off about him.

And let's not forget the creepy 'strawberries' incident.

However, maybe it would be in her interest to play along, for now - She certainly didn't need any enemies here.

Willow smiled softly. "I'll reconsider it, Lucius."

If there was something up with him, she wanted to figure it out. After all - keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.

* * *

A/N:

Cookies to anyone who did figure it out, but if you didn't then yup! Willow landed in the Hog's Head Inn. Remember, she said:

"*Hogs*-" when her skull cracked against the overhanging bricked piece of the fireplace. "Oh, my *head!*" she exclaimed as she fell further into the fire.

When I was thinking about places in Hogsmeade and remembered the Inn, I couldn't pass up that opportunity of Floo misdirection ;)


	12. Owl Correspondence 2

**Chapter 12: Owl Correspondence 2**

A/N:

The first letter is a straight excerpt from GoF (p.24), the second is a slightly modified version of the one on p. 226, and the third on is a slightly modified version of the one on p.228. I brought in the first letter to try to stay fairly canon-y and so readers who have not read GoF in a long time don't have to look it up. Hope you found that bit helpful : )

Also, a special thank you to a href="." Nickole/a for rec'ing this fic - 'Tis appreciated : )

* * *

Owl Correspondence Between Harry James Potter and Sirius Black:

* * *

(Sent Aug 23)

Sirius,

Thank you for your last letter. That bird was enormous; it could hardly get through my window.

Things are the same here as usual. Dudley's diet isn't going too well. My aunt found him smuggling donuts into his room yesterday. They told him they'd have to cut his pocket money if he keeps doing it, so he got really angry and chucked his Playstation out the window. That's a sort of computer thing you can play games on. Bit stupid really, now he hasn't even got 'Mega-Mutilation Part Three' to take his mind off things.

I'm okay, mainly because the Dursleys are terrified you might turn up and turn them all into bats if I ask you to.

A weird thing happened this morning, though. My scar hurts again. Last time that happened it was because Voldemort was at Hogwarts. But I don't reckon he can be anywhere near me now, can he? Do you know if curse scars sometimes hurt years afterward?

I'll send this with Hedwig when she gets back; she's off hunting at the moment. Say hello to Buckbeak for me.

-Harry

* * *

(Sept. 5, during the night)

Harry-

I'm already in the country and flying north immediately. This news about your scar is the latest in a series of strange rumors that have reached me here. If it hurts again, go straight to Dumbledore -- they're saying he's got Mad-Eye out of retirement, which means he's reading the signs, even if no one else is.

I'll be in touch very soon. My best to Ron and Hermione.

In addition, keep your eyes open, Harry, and be wary of any Americans you may come across -- And you must tell me if you do come across any. I can't say more just yet; just trust me.

-Sirius

* * *

(Sent Sept. 6, early afternoon)

Dear Sirius,

I reckon I just imagined my scar hurting, I was half-asleep when I wrote you last time. There's no point coming back, everything's fine here. Don't worry about me, my head feels completely normal.

But a really interesting/funny thing happened today that I figured you'd want to know. There was an American woman in Hogsmeade today. She interrupted an argument between Malfoy, Ron, and I -- and guess who she had with her? Malfoy Senior. But the funny part is that she actually confronted Snape when he tried to blame the thing on me and take away Gryffindor points! You should have seen it, Sirius -- It was pretty amazing. Snape practically breathed fire when she called him a jerk and questioned him. Ron and I have been laughing about it all day.

Although -- it was kind of strange when Lucius introduced the two -- Snape kind of freaked out when she touched him and if I didn't know better, I would have thought he was afraid of her.

Not sure if she's the American you were talking about, but she seemed alright -- apart from hanging with a Malfoy.

-Harry

* * *

(Sent Sept. 6, mid-afternoon)

Harry-

She was with Malfoy? Are you sure? Did you get a name at all?

And I'm already nearby, should you need me… But nice try attempting to downplay your last letter.

Remember -- you're talking to a Marauder here. We wrote the course on 'Lying to Authority Figures' -- which was probably the only course I aced at school.

-Sirius

* * *

(Sent Sept. 6, mid-afternoon)

Dear Sirius,

Yeah, she definitely was walking to him. Daddy Malfoy said something about them heading to the pub together.

We were a bit shocked at Snape getting yelled at, so we don't quite remember her name. Hermione swears that the woman's name was something about a plant and she had red hair -- Hermione suggested that maybe she was a long-lost American relative of Ron's, which he didn't care for because he was very confident that he was going to 'marry that woman someday.'

Hope that helps.

-Harry

* * *

(Sent Sept. 6, late-afternoon)

Harry-

If you see that woman again (her name is Willow) GO IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION!

I am unsure as to why she is here -- she claimed that she was part of an earth witch coven -- but she has a bad reputation and is wanted by the Ministry. She's a Dark Witch and supposed to be very powerful. For all I know she's here to help bring back Voldemort -- especially if she's rubbing elbows with scum like Malfoy.

In fact, I want you to go to Dumbledore's office right this instant and tell him about this woman. He'll want to know.

Although I do wish that I had seen her verbally disarm Snape. For an evil witch that tried to end the world, she really does make me laugh.

-Sirius


	13. The Social Butterfly of Hogsmeade

**Chapter 13: The Social Butterfly of Hogsmeade**

The title? *heh* Willow meets two new people and I realized she really is racking up her meet-n-greets for the day -- and we still got hours left, baby ;)

A special thank you to the following readers who rec'd this fic: a href="." andiesimmo/a,a href="." Aryll/a , a href="." borgrabbit/a -- 'Tis appreciated!

And THANK YOU to all the reviewers and readers! I mean, WOW! 11,500 hits in 5 days????!!!!! That is mind-boggling!!!!! I hope you continue to enjoy the story as more complications get woven in and connections get made… : ) I am having *so* much fun writing this and fantastic readers like you are a part of that- so again, thank you.

* * *

"So Ms. Rosenberg, in order to show you another side of me, how would you like to come to my home tomorrow night for dinner with my wife and I? Our house elves make some of the best dishes in England," Lucius offered with a captivating smile.

Willow balked at the thought of something called a house elf making her food. "I'm afraid I already have plans tomorrow night," she lied.

"Indeed?" he questioned disappointingly. "That is a shame. Perhaps we can arrange for a day later this week?"

"Ah, possibly. I'm staying with a friend and I'm not sure what she may have planned for me." Which was partly true, anyway. Except, of course, that Willow knew what Amelia had planned for her for the next two weeks before she was supposed to leave - meditation, meditation, meditation.

A figure in black robes burst out of a shop called Honeyduke's Sweet Shop and shouted at her.

"Willow! Good heavens, there you are. We've been wondering where you turned up to. Thought maybe Sirius…" and Giles trailed off as he noticed her platinum-haired companion. "That maybe you were seriously lost," he added quickly.

"Giles, sorry, somehow I ended up in a place called the Hog's Head Inn and Lucius here kindly" - more or less - "offered to show me where that Broomstick-y place was," she explained.

"Lucius Malfoy at your service," he said smoothly as he stepped closer and offered his hand to Giles - and he seemed to look slightly disappointed as they shook hands.

"Rupert Giles," the other man offered. "Thank you for assisting Willow." He turned to her and added, "Willow, the professor has been waiting so we should be moving along now."

"Sure," she told him. "Lucius, thanks for - er - for helping me today. Enjoy spending time with your son later."

He gifted her with another smile and Willow had to wonder if these wizards had special dentistry spells because he had the most perfect smile - '_all the better to hide his forked tongue'_, she thought with a smile

"Ms. Rosenberg," he bowed as he kissed the back of her hand. "It has been a pleasure," he said, eyes boring into hers as he slowly rose. His hand opened and a business card magically appeared there. "This is my business card and it contains a special enchantment. Simply say my full name while holding it and you will instantly appear wherever I am. And do let me know about dinner - my wife would be thrilled for an excuse to throw a dinner party."

Willow took the card reluctantly - she was a bit weirded out by how nice he was being now. She was almost starting to wonder if maybe she *had* read him wrong earlier… Maybe he was just grouchy…And maybe the strawberries thing was a fluke - maybe strong wizards could just 'pick up' her taste…

"Thank you Lucius," she politely responded as she pocketed his card. "Have a good day."

"You as well, Ms. Rosenberg," he said grandly before he walked away.

Giles began leading her in the opposite direction. "You should be careful what you say to people, Willow. Even giving your name out to strangers may be a bad idea. I think it would be best if we sailed under the radar for now," he chided her.

Pursing her lips in frustration, she glanced at him. "Giles, I didn't say anything important, don't worry."

"I hope so," he responded.

They made their way through a crowd of teenagers and ducked someone on a broomstick who seemingly needed some practice with braking on their way to The Three Broomsticks. Upon opening the door, Willow was shocked by how different it was compared to the Hog's Head Inn. Everything was light and cherry, dozens of students and adults milled about, and the bartender - a pretty blond woman with a bright smile - seemed much friendlier than the last one.

Plus - no farm animal smell.

"Willow dear! I was awfully worried we lost you! There have been cases of people accidentally flooing to Egypt on account of name mispronunciation and when Rupert told me you hit your head and mumbled I thought I might need to order a pyramid evacuation or something!" Amelia cried out as she pulled Willow into a tight hug.

A silly smile found its way onto her face. Willow liked her mentor very much; she was intelligent, kind, forgiving, patient, and inspiring. However, Willow didn't realize until now that Amelia thought of her as more than just her summer charge.

It gave her the warm fuzzies.

"I'm sorry I got you all worried, Amelia. I just got sent to that Hog inn place down the street."

Amelia's petite nose crinkled with derision. "Oh my, that place certainly is - ah -one of the less savory places in town. I hope you didn't run into any trouble?"

Willow thought about almost knocking Lucius down and yelling at the Severus guy. "No, not really," she said with a smile. She did want to talk to them about how Lucius and Severus had acted towards her, but she would save that for another day.

'_After all'_, she thought sadly, '_I already have to tell Amelia's sister about how I let a handsome convict into my home._'

"Minerva!" Amelia shouted across the bar and a slightly older woman looked up. The woman had a pinched face - like she rarely smiled - wore a green tartan plaid robe, and had her black hair pulled back into a severe bun. "I've found her, everything's all right."

"Oh good," Minerva said in a relieved tone as she walked over. "I was just about to ask Alastor here to help with the search," she informed them as a shorter, middle-aged man stepped from behind her.

Willow had to stifle a gasp as she saw him. The man was had a wooden leg, was covered with nasty looking scars, and his most discomforting feature was a magical eye that rotated in every direction. He was frightening - and Willow had seen a lot of scary things in her day.

"Amelia, I don't know if you've ever met Alastor Moody. He's a retired Auror - one of the absolute best - and just became our Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Alastor, this is my sister Amelia, leader of the Devon Coven."

"You're a practitioner of Wicca?" he asked gruffly, surprise sketched into his face.

"Yes," she replied with a smile as she extended her hand.

"Nice to meet ya," he said gruffly, "but I don't shake hands. Too many run-ins with dark wizards, mind you."

Did Willow just imagine it, or did that blue magical eye swivel towards her?

"Oh, alright then," Amelia said, hiding her surprise nicely. "Minerva, Alastor, allow me to introduce Willow Rosenberg, one of my students, and Rupert Giles, an old friend," she introduced as everyone acknowledged each other.

"Excellent," Minerva said crisply. "Let us settle down to business upstairs. Alastor, I'll see you later I'm sure."

"Good day," Alastor answered in his gruff voice as he departed for a corner table.

Leaving Willow, Giles, Amelia, and Minerva to head for the stairs - finally ready for their overdue meeting.

Yet… Willow couldn't help but wonder if Alastor Moody's eye could see through the ceiling, because she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her.

* * *

**A/N:**

Yeah… Dunno what happened, haha. I meant to write the Minerva talk and all this happened first - I suppose this is light-weight filler chapter but I needed her to meet Moody and have a bit longer chat with Lucius.

So next Willow will be spilling her Sirius story… Snape pays someone a visit and things don't go as expected… Harry goes to find Dumbledore… One Dark Wizard begins plotting… and that guy currently wearing a loaned Scooby-Doo shirt? Yeah, he'll be back too ;)

…Oh, and the Ministry shall be making an appearance as well, those interfering prats ;)

~*~Thanks for reading~*~


	14. The ‘Truth’ About Sirius Black

**Chapter 14: The 'Truth' About Sirius Black**

Wow, once again, thank you to *everyone* that has been reading and reviewing!! I love you, dear readers, and appreciate you taking the time to give feedback.

A giant *thank you* to the lovely readers who have enjoyed this story enough to rec it: a href="." AllenPitt/a, a href="." Irksome/a, and a href=". " Mayrose/a -- 'Tis appreciated greatly! : )

* * *

As the four of them sat down and Rosmerta, the blond-haired and curvy barmaid, took their orders, Willow began to reflect on her adventures in the last twenty-four hours since Padfoot saved her from Buckbeak in the woods. The shock that Padfoot's real name was Sirius Black and he was an escaped convict was finally starting to soak in. Typically Willow had good instincts and a part of her couldn't believe that the man she invited into her home was a killer.

A shiver went through her as she remembered how he had gently wiped away her tears and looked at her with warm, caring eyes. Could he really be an escaped murderer?

"Well Amelia," Minerva began briskly with a quick glance towards her sister. "You sounded so dramatic earlier that I must say my curiosity has been piqued. I do hope that this was important enough to meet, for with Albus in meetings all day I'm responsible for the castle and quite busy.

"Dear sister, you should know me better than that. Trust me, you will be happy we came to you. Willow," Amelia interrupted her thoughts. "I'd like for you to tell Minerva what you told me."

"Okay," Willow answered as she cleared her throat nervously - The piercing eyes of Minerva McGonagall were more than enough to intimidate her.

Willow went through the events of the past day, from her encounter in the woods to Padfoot exploding at her and escaping.

By the end of it, Minerva was shaking her head sadly. "I taught Sirius Black when he was a student and I still cannot believe how greatly he has changed. Never would I have imagined him to enlist in the services of You-Know-Who, much less condemning his best friends to death. And now to hear that he cast a Stupefying Charm at an unarmed woman!"

"What?" Willow exclaimed in a surprised voice. "Okay, can we back up here for a moment? My head's buzzing with all sorts of confusion. What exactly is it that Padfoot -um - Sirius Black did?"

"Yes, I too would be interested in hearing this," Giles added thoughtfully. "I have yet to hear of this Sirius Black for all talk of him being a dark wizard when I know the Watcher's Council keeps a close eye on the dark magic users around the world."

Minerva raised an eyebrow, looking baffled by his words. "What is the Watcher's Council?"

"You've never…? Ah, yes, I imagine that makes sense if we've never heard of the wizarding world." Then, almost as an after-thought in a softer voice, "What a shame, imagine all the possibilities of shared resources…"

"Don't mind Giles," Willow said with a smile. "He tends to get geeked out at the idea of more books and research being available to him."

Amelia snorted as she nodded her head, eyes twinkling with laughter, and a corner of Minerva's lips quirked upward.

Giles gave her an exasperated look. "Yes, erm, the Watcher's Council is located in London and they are responsible for assisting in the battle against the forces of darkness, which primarily includes guiding the one girl in all the world - well, I suppose the two girls in all the world now - who can stop them, and she is the Vampire Slayer. We also host incredible amounts of research on vampires, demons, magic, and other denizens of terror in our various libraries."

"The Vampire Slayer?" Minerva gasped. "I have come across references to such a person but she's generally thought of as a myth. Personally, I cannot believe how a girl could fight demons without using wand magic."

Her sister shot her a dark look and Minerva retracted her words. "I meant, fight demons without using any sort of magic, not just wand."

"Yes, well…" Giles continued with the 'No, really, there is such a thing as a vampire slayer, blah, blah, blah' speech while Willow tuned him out.

Honestly, she always got a smidge frustrated at how people could believe in the most extraordinary things and not believe in the slayer. Personally, she thought that Giles should just create a flyer to spell it out for people:

1. Yes, Vampires, Demons, and other Dark Creatures Do Exist

2. But have no fear! One Girl in All the World Will Be Selected to Fight Them: She Is the Slayer.

3. Oh, Actually There Are Two of Them - Praise the Benefits of CPR

Willow decided that if she ever worked at the Watcher's Council she would definitely bring the brochure idea up.

"So, what is the background story?" she asked once it looked like Giles was finished and Minerva's curiosity was sated.

"Thirteen years ago, during the Wizard War, Britain was under attack by a dark wizard who referred to himself as Lord Vol- Voldemort," and Willow thought it was interesting that Minerva winced at mentioning his name. "Voldemort was responsible for terrorizingboth the wizarding and muggle world where he and his Death Eaters - those were members of his personal army, so to speak - tortured and killed those who stood in their path.

"Their ultimate goal was for pure-blood wizard domination and they despised muggle-borns, wizard whose parents were muggles; half-bloods, wizards whose one parent was muggle-born; squibs," Minerva's eyes darkened at the words and Willow wondered if something had happened to Amelia in the war, "and of course muggles themselves."

"Oh my gosh," Willow gasped at the awful idea.

"Wait one moment," Giles interjected in an angry voice reminiscent of his Ripper days. "I was bloody living here working at the Council at that time and we never heard anything about this! Are you telling me there was Hitler-type fellow terrorizing the country, killing both magical and non-magical folks, and we never heard about it?"

Minerva sighed irritably. "Rupert, may I remind you not to raise your voice at me as I was not a member of the Ministry of Magic, our government, at that time - nor have I ever been?"

Giles nodded, looking chagrined. "My apologies, Minerva."

"As for your group never hearing of it, all I can say is that the Ministry does not like to deal with muggles. Mind you, they are nothing like Voldemort and his followers, but many in there do hold the belief that wizards are inherently superior to those not of our world. I assume that is why you were never told."

Willow thought she heard Giles mutter the words, "Bloody wankers," under his breath, although she could have been mistaken. For the Ministry's sake, she hoped they would never meet Giles. He may look like a sweet, innocent man, but she knew better - he would make them regret leaving the Council out when innocent lives were at stake.

"As for Sirius Black," Minerva went on. "The truth of the matter is, he was a member of the Order of the Phoenix, which was a group assembled by Albus Dumbledore to fight against Voldemort. Later, we found out that he was a double agent because he gave Voldemort the secret location of where the Potters were staying.

"The Potters - James, Lily, and their baby Harry - were in hiding from Voldemort and Sirius was their Secret-Keeper, meaning that only he knew the magically concealed location of their home. When Voldemort arrived he killed Lily and James, yet when he tried to kill Harry his curse rebounded upon him and he was vanquished - although some believe that he is still out there, gathering his strength to return."

Willow opened her mouth to speak but she quieted her with a raised finger - apparently Minerva was not the kind of woman you wanted to interrupt.

"Afterwards the other best friend of the Potters, little Peter Pettigrew, confronted Sirius about his betrayal on the street. In return Sirius killed him and twelve innocent muggle bystanders, all with one curse, until the only thing left was a giant crater and him laughing like a madman."

Willow's gut twisted and she suddenly felt like she was going to be sick.

"Willow, are you alright?" Giles asked, concern evident in his voice.

"I- I need to use the restroom. Where is it?"

Amelia bit her lip, clearly worried by her reaction - which made Willow feel extremely self-conscious. "The loo is downstairs and to the right, my dear."

"Thank you," she gasped out quickly as she jerked up and raced quickly downstairs. Within a minute she found herself kneeling on the cool linoleum floor of the ladies restroom emptying the contents of her stomach. She felt faint and was plagued by a complicated mixture of horror, revulsion, and deep, bitter disappointment.

Her mind was racing and trying to figure out what seemed like an impossible math equation - Sirius Black the mass murderer just did not equate with Padfoot her houseguest.

As her mind flashed possible images of Sirius standing in front of bloodied bodies, she felt her stomach twist again. Willow just could not believe it and the mere idea that the man she invited into her home was a killer saddened her.

'_But why?_' an inner voice whispered. '_Why should you care about some strange man you just met?_'

Which was true… Why did she care so much?

Her mental internal conversation was interrupted by a knock on her stall door.

"Excuse me, but are you all right in there?" asked a young female voice.

"Fine, just fine," she answered as she stood up and flushed the toilet. She would have to ponder on her feelings at a later point, obviously.

"I was just feeling a bit sick," she said as she emerged from the stall and the girl in the restroom jumped when she saw her.

Willow's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "Weren't you that girl involved with that fight earlier?"

"Oh, yes, that was me," she answered rather nervously. "Although I was more of a bystander watching the boys test out their testosterone than anything else," the bushy, brown-haired girl added with a small smirk.

Willow grinned as she washed her hands - After growing up with Xander and Jesse as her bests friends she certainly knew what it was like to be the only girl in a friendship group.

With a grimace, she checked her reflection in the mirror and turned to the girl. "You don't by any chance have any gum, do you?"

"No, ma'am," she replied with a quick shake of the head. "But I do know a spell to clean your mouth and freshen your breath," she added helpfully.

"Sure! That sounds great!" Willow exclaimed eagerly.

With a swish of her wand she called out "Aliento fresco!"

Instantly Willow felt a bubbling sense in her mouth and as it was leaving a spiffy minty taste remained. "Whoa! That sure was neato!" Willow giggled as the remaining bubbles tickled the roof of her mouth. "Thanks for that," she said with a smile.

The girl beamed proudly. "Sure, it was no problem."

Willow realized that they were probably waiting on her upstairs. "I've got to go, but make sure you keep those boys of yours out of trouble, alright?"

With a small laugh she replied with a "Yes ma'am," as Willow left for the upstairs room.

"Feeling better, my dear?" Amelia asked kindly as Willow returned.

"Yes, thank you," she said with a nod.

"Willow," Minerva began. "After thinking about your story and the possible implications of Sirius Black in the local area and threatening to bring back Voldemort, I've decided you must tell your story to the headmaster, Albus Dumbledore."

"Not your Ministry people?" she asked, mildly bewildered at why she would tell something concerning national security to a school principal.

A shocked laugh escaped Minerva's lips. "Merlin, no! The Ministry is, well I don't like to speak poorly of our government, but as two sixth years I know would say: They are a bunch of dunderheads." Her face broke out into a wide smile at the insult.

"Bloody right you are," remarked Giles irritably, evidently still sore about the Ministry's negligence in reporting a crazy, evil wizard to the Watcher's Council.

"Therefore," Minerva said with a bemused glance at Giles, "I've contacted Dumbledore to let him know we're coming, but unfortunately he's still in a meeting right now about the Triwizard Cup. Since this information is not time-sensitive I've decided it may wait until he is finished. Besides, we surely don't want the Ministry to find out and bring those awful dementors back."

"Oh, Minerva! You never told me that! They are finally bringing the Triwizard Cup back?" asked Amelia excitedly with a gleam in her green eyes - evidently this event was a big deal.

"Oh yes, but honestly Amelia do *not* tell anyone." Amelia made a move to speak and Minerva said, "Oh no, don't deny it. You know how you can be sometimes. It's rather a hush-hush matter until Halloween," Minerva retorted with a roll of her eyes.

Willow had to hide a giggle. Even though her mentor was older and surely wiser than her, it was fun to see her sisterly interaction with the older woman.

"So, what do we do while we wait?" Willow asked.

"There's no telling how long the meeting may take - that Ludo Bagman certainly enjoys the sound of his own voice - but it would be best if you three came to Hogwarts to wait," Minerva decided.

"Go to Hogwarts? You mean the castle over there?" Willow squeaked excitedly. "I've never been in a castle before. Do you have any guard dragons or anything?" she joked.

Minerva scoffed. "By Merlin, what would we do that for? Dragons are highly unstable as pets, although they do produce excellent substances for potions. However, we do have a giant squid in the lake. He rather enjoys visitors, if you want to meet him - if meeting magical creatures is your cup of tea, that is."

Willow's eyes widened in surprise. "Uh, not really," she said weakly.

'Merlin' knows she's met more than enough of them in her lifetime.

* * *

A/N:

Aliento fresco- Spanish for 'fresh breath'. Se espanol pero no se Latin, como JKR. Hence, any spells I make up will likely be en espanol ;)

I assume you can guess who were the 2 sixth year students that Minerva referred to? ;)

Reviews make me happy and keep the frequent updates coming, so please drop me a line - even if its just a one-word line.

Thanks!


	15. Hope Is For Fools

**Chapter 15: Hope Is For Fools**

**A/N:**

A special thanks to a href="." amari/a for enjoying the story enough to rec' it -- 'Tis appreciated : )

As always, thank you to everyone who reviews - especially the readers who comment often and the ones who give me some excellent feedback -- I *really* appreciate it!

**And as a side note to some inquiring minds: **The Order does not get recalled until one hour after Voldemort's return at the end of Book 4. Also, the end of Book 4 hints that no one knows Sirius is innocence, judging how Dumbledore had Sirius in dog form around everyone and then Dumbledore has Sirius present himself to Snape and Molly Weasley - who are very surprised. Hence, I believe that Minerva McGonagall does not know the truth about Sirius at this point. If there is any evidence to point to the contrary let me know, just for my own sake of curiosity : )

* * *

Sirius Black winced as Buckbeak began to devour his dinner, a dead fox. Suddenly the mushrooms he had picked near their hiding place in the Forbidden Forest did not seem quite so tempting.

"Ugh," he muttered as he placed the mushrooms back in his sack, disgusted by the sounds of tearing flesh and swallowing. "Sometimes you make me want to forgo meat, old friend."

Buckbeak just kept on scarfing down his meal.

"Ya know, or you could have waited until I was done eating first," Sirius commented sourly. Not that he really felt hungry - his stomach had been tied in knots since last night.

Especially since he received Harry's latest post that Willow was going to a pub with Lucius Malfoy.

Now Buckbeak paused in his eating to blink innocently at Sirius.

"Oh, don't look at me like that," he frowned. The damn hippogriff really got on his nerves sometimes, although it wasn't hard today - his nerves were already frayed by stress, worry, and disappointment.

"What about you Buckbeak?" he asked in a tired voice - one older than his years. "Can you believe the notes from Remus and Harry?"

"I mean," he went on to the distracted hippogriff. "It's obvious who she is. Okay, sure, my presumption at the cottage was off - Willow wasn't trying to trick me into capture and she's not working with the Ministry. I can admit I was wrong - I can do that sometimes after all," he added defensively when Buckbeak let out a clear snort of derision.

"But still, it just proves that my instincts were right, to some degree!" he exclaimed as he continued with his rant. "Sure, she wasn't after me because I escaped from Azkaban but who bloody knows what she really wanted with me? According to Remus and Mad-Eye she's a dark witch who tried to end the sodding world! Bloody hell, not even You-Know-Who has tried that!"

"Bollocks," he said softly. "I seem to be making a habit out of trusting the wrong people, don't I? First Peter, now her."

Sirius plopped down next to Buckbeak, who was still lying down but finished with his meal, and began scratching behind the hippogriff's ear.

"Obviously the bird's up to no good. Add to the fact that Harry said she's hanging out with that pillock Lucius Malfoy and going to the bloody pub with him! Lucius bloomin' Malfoy! I can't believe that. Stupid sod," he muttered with revulsion.

Sirius paused thoughtfully. "I've been gone a long time and I know he's got that Draco boy, but I wonder if he's still with that ice queen of his? Merlin knows that growing up with that cousin of mine nearly drove me mad, can't say I would blame him."

He turned to Buckbeak and could feel his blood rushing at the thought of that prat touching Willow. "Ya don't think he's trying to date her? Or what if she already was dating him?", he mused out loud. "After all, it's not like I know a bloody thing about her sex life, considering we just met."

Buckbeak raised his head slowly and looked at him expectantly.

"No! Nor do I even want to know about her sex life. That bird's bad news - obviously off-limits now."

But even as he said those words his heart constricted painfully and Sirius slumped further against Buckbeak.

For over a decade Sirius had been alone, separated by those he loved the most, his friends who were as good as family - better than, actually. Even worst, he had to live with the dark guilt that weighted his soul that two of those friends were gone forever - all because he had thought it was a brilliant idea to make Peter the Secret-Keeper. Since escaping from Azkaban that weight had been lifted a little, knowing that others knew the truth and that he could reclaim Harry as his god-son and Remus as his friend.

But those connections didn't matter when he was on the run. He was just so *lonely*.

And for the first time, yesterday, he had felt that loneliness lifted. When he had spent time with Willow, it had felt like the embers of his passion for living had been reignited - She had made him feel like a normal person again. The moments they spent flirting or laughing at his failure using muggle devices even now made his heart warm.

Not to mention, she was this cute, slip of a girl with beautiful green eyes and a warm smile that made him melt- how on *earth* was she the witch responsible for almost destroying the world?

That's why, in the recesses of his heart, he hoped that his initial judgment had not been wrong -- He hoped that maybe Remus and Mad-Eye had given him faulty information.

Sirius let out a long, painful sigh.

Hope is for fools - he had learned that long ago when he lost everything that mattered to him.

* * *

A/N:

Ay, a bit short, but wanted to take a peek inside Sirius' mind before some other plot points occur : )

Oh, and I don't particularly care about reviews… but my Muse is quite fond of them and she is a demanding little creature, so please leave a comment so she doesn't go on strike!

Hahahahahaha ;) Thanks!


	16. The ‘Dark One’ Is Here

**Chapter 16: The 'Dark One' Is Here**

Severus Snape strode through the Hogwarts halls quickly, his robes billowing behind him as he maneuvered past the tiresome students who were careening through the halls like wild animals as they left the Great Hall after dinner.

One happened to bump into him and the boy's books spilled all over the floor. "You dundering fool," Severus snarled. "Watch where you are going!" Stepping around the books carefully - and not really caring that his foot accidentally kicked one as he passed - he continued on his mission.

He sneered. Merlin, how he hated children - especially the clumsy ones.

As he reached the seventh floor hallway he saw Dumbledore start to walk into a room. "Dumbledore!" he called as he stepped up his pace.

"Dumbledore," he panted, as a result from racing throughout the castle. "The Dark One is here, I am sure of it. She is in Hogsmeade and-"

Severus was cut of by an outraged shout. "What did you just say?"

Inwardly grimacing, Severus realized that the Triwizard meeting was still taking place and that Cornelius Fudge was just inside the doorway.

The portly Minister of Magic looked as if he had seen a ghost. "Did my ears correctly hear you, my boy?"

Severus sneered - He hated being called 'boy' more than he even hated the flamboyant suits that Fudge wore - why this man thought it ideal that he dressed like a clown, Severus would never know. Then he glanced Dumbledore who appeared surprised and motioned for him to proceed. Behind Fudge the Head of the Ministry's Department of Game and Sports, Ludo Bagman, look puzzled - as always, Severus thought with disdain at the dim former Beater.

"Yes, you did. Earlier today in Hogsmeade I met the Dark One," Severus replied curtly.

"What? She's here? Of all places?" Fudge exclaimed like a frightened child who was just told the monsters in his closet were real.

"Severus," Dumbledore began thoughtfully. "Could you please explain this is in greater detail. How do you know?" he asked as he gestured for the other three men to sit down.

He shifted uneasily, reluctant to explain just how he knew. Severus Snape did not give a damn about what people thought of him, but all the same he hated to have his former association with dark magic be brought up.

"She caught me reprimanding some of the children in Hogsmeade and introduced herself to me as Willow Rosenberg." Severus thought it would be wise to leave Lucius out at this moment - even if, in his opinion, her association with Lucius only further implicated her guilt. But while he secretly disliked the pompous prat, he could never openly betray him - not when he had a feeling that all too soon he would be returning to his previous role as a spy.

"When she shook my hand I," Snape paused as a shiver of revulsion passed through him. "I could *feel* the dark magic in her - it seemed to bleed out of her. She felt like…" Severus met Dumbledore's steady blue eyes. "She felt, in some ways regarding her depth of power and darkness, like You-Know-Who."

Severus pursed his lips. He hated to refer to Voldemort as You-Know-Who; it seemed only cowards did that. And he was no coward. However, in front of Fudge he knew better than to speak rashly, especially with his checkered past.

"And how is it you know that this Willow Rosenberg is the infamous Dark One?" Dumbledore asked pointedly. "The witch that tried to destroy the world and in the process revealed herself to the most powerful of us who could feel the sudden shift in power? The witch that Ministries of Magic around the world would like to contain for *questioning*?" Dumbledore's face darkened on the last word - Snape knew he disagreed with many of the Ministries policies, although after meeting the Dark One he would have no problem with locking her up without a trial.

Besides, she was quite a rude, bossy little tart.

"I know that there is not a lot of information on the Dark One and it varies according to the source, but I flooed an acquaintance - a witch from San Francisco that assists me with my Potions research from time to time - and she confirmed that the name of the woman we know of as the Dark One is Willow Rosenberg, from California."

"Merlin's Beard!" Fudge shouted. "Clearly I will need to call in some of the dementors right this minute," he spoke frantically and his eyes grew wide with the realization that the Dark One was in the vicinity.

"Let us contemplate this matter, Minister. If the woman is only wanted for questioning, why would you need dementors? That is the sort of welcoming that may make Ms. Rosenberg less likely to answer your questions, which then makes pulling her into custody a moot point," Dumbledore explained delicately.

"Don't be daff, Dumblefore! This woman is a clear menace! It is beyond me why that bloody Minister in America hasn't done anything about her, but I tell you this - I will not allow her to roam free in Britain and put lives at stake! She must be apprehended and should be sent to Azkaban. You've heard of how powerful she is - there is no possible way we could overcome her alone. I wouldn't be surprised if she was too much of a match even for *you*," Fudge sniffed.

Blue eyes froze instantly as Dumbledore sat straight in his seat and stared at the Minister. "Cornelius, I will *not* allow you to bring Dementors to the Hogwarts ground - not after their behavior last year. Those dark creatures are dangerous and are not as loyal as you think. More so, it is unlawful to judge this woman before her trial - especially when her offenses took place thousands of miles away out of your jurisdiction." Power seemed to pulsate from Dumbledore and Fudge sat back in his seat with a dazed expression.

"Now, I do think this woman should be questioned and I believe she may indeed be very dangerous. However, we must maintain our integrity," he finished solemnly.

"Fine, Dumbledore, I will not bring the dementors here - for now. But that decision rests on your head so pray nothing terrible happens," Fudge acquiesced with a grimace.

"Now I must go and call up the Aurors, preferably before the sun sets. I've heard this woman spends a lot of time in graveyards at night and I wouldn't be surprised if she was more powerful underneath a dark sky. We'll set anti-apparition wards around the castle and Hogsmeade. By Merlin, we'll get her," Fudge stated with finality.

"Severus, could you please inform the other professors to meet in the Great Hall and make a formal announcement that all students are to head to their common rooms?" Dumbledore asked.

"Yes, I can do that," Severus answered swiftly. He would be pleased when the Dark One would be in the custody of the Ministry - after all his hard work thirteen years ago he had no desire at all for another dark magic user to set up shop here.

"Excellent. I hope we will get this matter wrapped up quickly," Dumbledore said with a grim smile.

"Master Dumbledore! Master Dumbledore!" squeaked a voice under his line of sight. Ugh - it was one of those house elves. Severus disliked the odd, unintelligent creatures - even if they did make a fine Shepherd's Pie.

"Yes, Dobby? What is it?" Dumbledore asked kindly.

"Mistress McGonagall told Dobby to get you as soon as your meeting was finished because she has very important matters to discuss with you, sir!" informed the elf eagerly as he adjusted a ridiculous tea cozy on the top of his head.

"All right Dobby, it appears I will continue to be busy, but where is she? I'll need to talk to her anyways."

"Mistress McGonagall be in your office sir."

"Thank you Dobby."

* * *

A/N:

And of course… McGonagall will not be alone in his office either! ;)

Thank you for all the reviews! I have decided I have the best readers in the whole world : ) And some people added that Sirius should have mentioned how the 'ice queen' was a relative of his so I added a line about that in the previous chapter.

Keep 'em coming! :D


	17. A Gray Shimmering Sea

**Chapter 17: A Gray Shimmering Sea**

First off, I want to acknowledge one series on this site that partly influenced my desire to write a HP crossover - and to do fun daily updates because I learned from them how fun it is! So mad thanks to a series that I consider to be a wonderful crossing of the BTVS and HP universes: a href=".org/Story-21434/scriptificus+Volume+I+" Volume I: Beginnings/a.

A special thanks to a href="." LIGHThearted/a for enjoying the story enough to rec' it -- 'Tis appreciated : )

Also, wasn't sure if anyone caught Snape's reference to a witch from San Francisco… That was a little ref to Charmed, but since its been years since I've watched that show I doubt I'll ever bring any of them onto the main stage.

Finally ~ this chapter is quite longer than all the others, so for those of you who appreciate such a thing, I do hope you enjoy this!

* * *

Willow was in an absolute state of ecstasy. For the last few hours, as they waited for Headmaster Dumbledore to meet them, Minerva showed the three of them around the castle. Although Amelia was quite familiar with the place, Willow and Giles were completed astonished by everything. The figures in the portraits moved and spoke, the library held a gorgeous amount of leather-bound books, the students did magic in the hallways - sometimes to Minerva's dislike because she had to sentence some boys to detention for jinxing another student - and the staircases actually moved of their own accord. Not to mention, they saw some students actually riding broomsticks outside!

She was disappointed that the tour had ended - even several hours were not enough time to get to know this marvelous place.

Now they were waiting in the Headmaster's office where Minerva and Amelia were discussing something called 'Quidditch', Giles was carefully reading the spines of the various books placed around the room - too darn British and polite to actually pick one up without permission of the Headmaster - and she was looking out the window and trying to remind herself that she wasn't dreaming.

A twinge of jealousy hit her - Willow wished that she had grown up in this world where magic was commonplace and children were able to attend an amazing school like Hogwarts.

Of course, that would have meant she never would have been in Sunnydale and met Xander and Buffy - or Tara for that matter.

A tear formed in the corner of eye and she blinked, letting it naturally fall down her face.

Tara would have loved it here.

Once during Halloween they discussed how silly people were in their stereotypes of witches - that they had warts, especially enjoyed dining on children lost in the woods, and flew on broomsticks. And Tara, smiling that beautiful smile of hers, had said "I certainly wouldn't want the warts, but how amazing would it be to actually fly?" Then she had laughed, that sweet laughter that literally seemed to tinkle like a bell.

Her chest constricted and Willow had to remind herself to take several deep breaths. It wouldn't do for her to lose it in front of this headmaster guy.

As she wiped away a second tear she hated the fact that even after over four months there would be times like this when Tara's death felt just as fresh. In moments like these she could feel herself losing her connection with the earth, with her magic - and it was moments like these that she feared that one day her darker half may come forth again.

A soft nudge against her hand startled her and Willow looked down to see a beautiful crimson bird with a long golden tail. He gave her a significant look and Willow knelt down to further inspect him. About the size of a swan, he looked unlike anything she had ever seen - and even though he was only an animal she sensed an intelligence hid behind his eyes.

"Hey there, little guy. Where did you come from?" she gently asked.

Again, he nudged her hand and this time he began a bird-song.

Distantly, Willow noticed that her three companions had stopped whatever they had been doing to look at the bird.

The song was… Indescribable. Willow was transfixed by the light musical tones that erupted from the bird in a swell of warmth that seemed to push back her pain at losing Tara and her fears that she would never recover from her actions after Tara's death. The music ran along her skin, leaving a tingly feeling, and seemed to strike her heart and soul. She gasped at that piercing note and felt her heart open to let in the bird song in. As the song came to a close she felt that magical warmth leave her, but in its wake was a new sense of courage that she realized she had been lacking lately amidst her fears of controlling her magic and seeing her friends again.

She was left panting at this new euphoric state and giggled loudly. The feeling the bird left her with felt better than anything Rack had ever done to her and she felt so fresh and new.

"I see you've met Fawkes. He must like you," a man's voice interrupted her thoughts. "Curious, quite curious," she heard him mutter.

Willow raised her head to look up and had to hide a laugh. She and Dawn had taken to watching the Lord of the Rings movies - Dawn, of course loving the dirty-hot Aragorn and Willow being fond of the strong and lovely Eowyn - and the man in front of her looked very similar to Gandalf. His build was tall and slender and he looked to be very old with long silver hair and a beard that reached past his waist. However, his robes were neither white nor grey like either versions of Gandalf, but a light blue that matched his eyes very well.

"Albus, I'm so glad that you are here. We have some pertinent information for you, I'm afraid," began Minerva, still sitting comfortably in the chair she had conjured earlier.

"Indeed?" A slow smile formed on his face and his eyes twinkled beneath his crescent moon glasses.

"Yes, yes. Albus, you remember my sister Amelia, don't you?"

"Amelia, of course," he smiled as they shook hands. "How is your coven these days?"

"Running very well and growing quite a bit lately she answered with a touch of pride. "Albus Dumbledore, please meet an old friend of mine, Rupert Giles. He works for the Watcher's Council."

"It has been a long time since I've met somebody from the Watcher's Council. I am pleased to make your acquaintance."

"You as well," Giles responded primly - Willow idly wondered how long he would wait before he asked the Headmaster if he could borrow some books.

"And this," Amelia began as Willow walked forward to shake his hand, "is Willow Rosenberg, a pupil of mine."

His eyes studied her intently and she felt herself feeling very exposed as their eyes met - It was almost as if he were looking into her. Dumbledore's eyes closed as they shook hands and she thought he mumbled, "Seems Severus was only half right."

"Ms. Rosenberg," he smiled, opening his eyes. "I must say, it is certainly nice to meet you." His hand swept across his desk and he pulled forth a tin full of candy. "Lemon drop?"

"Ah, no thanks, that's okay, Headmaster," she answered, feeling a bit taken aback. During their exchange Willow could have sworn she felt his power pulse within him. Suddenly she knew why Minerva wanted her to meet this man, who was clearly more than just a school principal.

"Now Minerva, let me guess. Does this visit have anything to do with dark magic?" Dumbledore began without further preamble.

"Yes! Albus, Willow was visited upon by Sirius Black who said something about how You-Know-Who would be returning and then everyone would know the truth, whatever that means. It sounded like a threat of some sort and I thought it was important she talk to you."

The old man's eyes widened in surprise but then he resumed his calm demeanor. "Sirius? I see. And that is it, Minerva?" Again, she could feel those blue eyes on her and Willow began to feel anxious.

"Yes," she replied, clearly puzzled by his question. "Isn't that enough to know that a former spy is threatening to bring You-Know-Who back?"

Dumbledore's lip quirked up, as though he couldn't prevent a smile, and he began chuckling. "Oh my," he said between laughter.

Willow and Giles shared a look - Clearly this guy wasn't all there. She wondered if Lucius had been right when he had said the headmaster had been 'getting on in years'.

"Albus!" Minerva shrilly chided. "This is certainly no laughing matter."

"Of course, of course," he said as his laughter ceased. "Forgive me, I have often been told that my sense of humor is decidedly peculiar. Unfortunately, Minerva, I believe there is something young Ms. Rosenberg has not informed you of - that at one point she was referred to as the Dark One.'

Minerva gasped and Willow bit her lip in worry - hard enough that she felt a drop of blood form.

"Albus, you must be joking!" Minerva scoffed as she gestured towards Willow. "I've been with her all day and I cannot believe that a young unassuming girl like her could possibly be the same Dark One that we've heard of!"

Dumbledore nodded solemnly. "It is the truth, Minerva."

"Albus, please, it is not like that. This girl is under my care and has been recovering very well," Amelia informed.

"Amelia! How could you not have told me! It was all the wizarding world gossiped about for a full week," Minerva questioned, clearly aggravated and maybe a bit hurt at being left out.

"Minerva, you know what my coven does and you know that for over a decade, ever since," she paused, blinked her bright eyes, and took a deep breath. "Ever since then I have been practicing the study of healing and often taking wayward daughters and sons of Gaia under the wing of my coven."

"Honestly Amelia-"

"Minerva, please," Dumbledore interrupted calmly, for which Willow was grateful because she hated the way Minerva's eyes kept darting towards her in fear. "I think it would be fair if I asked Willow a few questions. Willow, is that all right with you?"

"Y-Yes sir," she stammered, wondering if the powerful wizard was planning to smite her in an instant.

"Is it true that you committed murder and attempted to end the world through the use of dark magic?" He studied her closely but she couldn't read his expression.

Her eyes lowered in shame and she wondered if she wore the magical version of a scarlet letter to let everyone know that she, Willow Rosenberg, was guilty of many sins and abuses of power. Suddenly the courage she had felt earlier with the bird named Fawkes seemed to evaporate under his careful gaze.

"Yes sir," she said in a shaky voice. "It was triggered by my girlfriend's murder - not that that is an excuse or anything because it's not!" she added quickly. "But I did murder her killer and then," she paused as she found it difficult to speak. "I-I thought the world would be better off if everyone's pain was ended and so… I tried to end the world."

Willow didn't want to look up, didn't want to see the disgust in the kind old man's eyes.

"And since then, Willow Rosenberg, have committed yourself to turning away from the way of dark magic?" his voice rang out.

"Yes sir, I've been with Amelia and her coven for four months and, well, it's not always easy and sometimes I get worried that I might regress bu-but I'm a lot better and I don't ever want to feel that way ever, ever again - I don't want to do those things again," she added more firmly.

Slowly she raised her eyes, while blinking back tears, and awaited his judgment.

"Out of curiosity, Willow, what did you feel when Fawkes began singing to you?" His head was cocked to the side as he peered at her curiously.

Willow frowned in surprise. She had not been expecting that question.

"Well sir, I was thinking about Tara -she, um, was my girlfriend - and about how much she would love it here, which instantly made me remember that she would never get to be here on account of - you know. And when Fawkes started singing I just felt," she shrugged. "Better. It was like he made the pain melt away and made me less afraid of being unable to control my magic."

Dumbledore smiled brightly, as though he had made a significant discovery.

"I'm afraid we haven't much time, but I will explain what is necessary. Fawkes is a phoenix and they have the power through their song to increase the courage of the pure of heart and strike fear into the hearts of the impure. Judging by your expression at the end of the song, I imagine he did the former for you."

Willow nodded, amazed. Who knew that phoenixes were real? Or that they had powers like that?

"Based on Fawkes own judgment of you and my own analysis, I can honestly tell the truth about you." He nodded to himself and it looked as if he was deep in thought.

She waited, expecting him to elaborate.

But Minerva beat her to the punch. "And what exactly is the truth, Albus?" she asked, clearly annoyed by his lack of a proper answer.

He smiled. "Willow Rosenberg is not a threat to us, or our community. When I look at you," he said turning to her, "I see a gray shimmering sea. Waves of black magic and white magic roll within you, each fighting to take hold. But the truth is neither can take full control and the only true control you will have is when those two forces cease being the magical equivalent of oil and water and begin mixing together, for both are a part of you. You are not the Dark One, Willow Rosenberg, unless you wish it to be so and relinquish that control. But I can see from your mind that that is not your true desire - and it is choice that separates the good from the evil."

Standing there, formerly wilting under his gaze, Willow straightened her spine and stared at him in shock." Wait, so you don't think I'm evil?"

Granting her an indulgent smile, he replied with a wink. "No more than I am - although I do confess in a rough game of Wizard's Chess it may come out just a bit."

"But we have no more time for talking. The Aurors are on their way, I'm afraid," he added soberly

"What for?" Minerva asked.

"Why?" Amelia asked in frightened tone as she glanced towards Willow.

"Who?" both Giles and Willow asked, looking at each other in confusion.

"It seems you encountered Severus Snape today" -- she nodded -- "and he did some research and discovered your identity. He told me - as he should have - but unfortunately the Minister of Magic overheard him and has called for your capture. Aurors are dark wizard catchers who work for the Ministry and they will be coming to capture you. I'm also afraid that the Floo Network will be watched and anti-apparition wards have already been raised."

"At least," he said, somewhat darkly, "I managed to convince Cornelius that the dementors would be unnecessary."

Willow stared at Amelia and Minerva who, along with Dumbledore, managed to look grim at the idea of whatever a 'dementors' was. However, she was pretty sure anything that sounded like a combination of 'demented' and 'tormentor' did not involve rainbows and gum drops.

"What do we do?" asked a flustered Amelia. "There is no way I am letting the Ministry get a hold of Willow - they're liable to lock her away in Azkaban without even listening to her!" Her mentor's jade eyes flashed angrily and her fists were balled up at her sides.

"Lock me up? But why? I mean, okay, I was evil and all - but it was just a small moment and hey, world didn't *actually* get destroyed, and let's not forget all the times I helped to save the world which I think counts in the proverbial scales of the world," she babbled quickly, feeling suddenly very afraid.

"Yes, surely we can just tell these blokes what happened and they'll back off, won't they?" Giles asked, even though it looked like he already knew the answer.

"The Ministry is rather stubborn I'm afraid," Dumbledore sighed. "I may be able to help, but it will go much easier if you are not in their custody." His eyes shifted towards the window.

"Do you know how to fly a broom, Ms. Rosenberg?"

* * *

A/N:

Things are starting to get *very* interesting…

I'm particularly proud of this chapter, so lemme know if you likey : )

--'increasing the courage of the pure of heart and striking fear into the hearts of the impure' -- taken from JKR's Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, which was found through the HP Lexicon website. I figured there wasn't a better way to have Dumbledore state it, so I used that line - don't sue!


	18. I Knew Dark Witches Say Neato

**Chapter 18: I *Knew* Dark Witches Didn't Use the Word 'Neato'**

A special thanks to a href="." merlyna/a for enjoying the story enough to rec' it -- 'Tis appreciated : )

* * *

"So where do you reckon Padfoot is?" Ron Weasley asked Harry Potter as they, along with Hermione Granger, walked through the castle.

"I don't know," Harry responded absent-mindedly as he glanced out a window. "He said he was nearby so I'm guessing he's in the Shrieking Shack."

"Well I think we should ask him where he is so we can bring him some food. I'm sure poor Padfoot is starving out there, not to mention poor Buckbeak," Hermione opined.

"Blimey!" Ron said with a grin. "Did I just hear Hermione Granger suggest that we sneak out of the castle?"

Hermione rolled her eyes at him. "Honestly Ron. I'm just saying that he's probably hungry. What do you think, Harry?"

Harry jerked at the sound of his name. "Huh?"

"I *said* do you think we should make a food delivery to Padfoot? Really. Doesn't anyone one ever pay any attention to what I say?" she asked in a frustrated voice.

"Nope," chimed in Fred and George Weasley as they passed by the trio in the hallway.

"Hmmph!" Hermione let out a frustrated noise and folded her arms.

"I'm sorry, Hermione, I'm just thinking about what Sirius said about the American witch. What do you think it means that there's a Dark Witch in town?" Harry asked thoughtfully.

"I'm not sure. But Professor Flitwick said that Professor Dumbledore would be available sometime after dinner, so we'll hopefully get to ask him in a few minutes," said Hermione.

"I still can't bloody believe that my future wife is a dark witch," Ron sighed heavily. "I mean, she didn't much look like she was evil, did she?"

Harry grinned and patted his friends shoulder while Hermione got an annoyed look on her face. "There, there mate," he consoled. "I can't believe she's evil either, but I'm sure Sirius is right. And let's not forget, she was hanging out with Lucius Malfoy."

"What if Sirius is wrong?" asked Hermione contemplated aloud. "Maybe he's confused."

Harry shook his head. "How do you figure?"

"Well, she did stick up for you against Snape *and* she ratted out Draco, even though his father was right there," she argued. "Besides, everyone seems to think that Sirius is a mass murderer and they're wrong - maybe people are wrong about her, too."

"Yeah, but…" Harry frowned. He had to admit, she really didn't seem evil when they met her but he couldn't bring himself to believe that his godfather was wrong.

"And," Hermione continued, "you didn't see her in the loo like I did."

Ron made a disgusted face. "Thank Merlin! Like I want to hear some girl retching."

"Yeah, and I don't think that proves anything, Hermione. I'm sure even dark witches and wizards get sick from time to time. Heck, I bet even Voldemort has thrown up in his life," Harry added with a smirk at the funny mental image - it almost made him think of what someone could do if their Boggart turned into Voldemort.

"Bloody hell, Harry! Don't say his name!" Ron admonished with nervous eyes.

"Voldemort, Voldemort, Voldemort," Harry chanted back. "You need to get used to it, Ron, and say it like Dumbledore."

"Right, maybe I will when I'm one of the most powerful wizards in the world, just like him."

"Honestly, you two. Can we get back to the topic?" asked an exasperated Hermione.

Once they nodded, she began again. "As I was saying, the woman I saw in the bathroom did *not* act like a dark witch. You would think she'd be a," Hermione hushed her voice, "b-i-t-c-h, but she wasn't."

"A bitca?" asked a confused Rob, leading his friends to just shake their heads.

"Instead of acting like that," Hermione went on and ignored Ron, "she was really nice. She even giggled like a kid and used the word - I quote - 'neato'. I mean, what sort of dark witch does that?" Hermione asked with a gleam in her eye. She always did enjoy solving any mystery that came their way.

"I don't know," Harry sighed as they reached the Gargoyle that guarded Dumbledore's office. "Maybe she's undercover."

Facing the gargoyle his said, "Gum drops!" and the Gargoyle allowed them access.

Harry heard voices behind the door and he looked at his friends, wondering if the meeting was still going on.

"Just knock anyway. I've still got loads of Potions to get done," Ron muttered.

Harry knocked and instantly the voices quieted.

"Yes?" asked Dumbledore from behind the door.

"Headmaster, it's Harry, Ron, and Hermione. We, ah, have an important message to deliver. From, um, that mutual friend of ours," he added, hoping that was a good enough reference when Dumbledore was with other people.

The door opened and they stepped into Dumbledore's office - surprised to see that Professor McGonagall, a woman that looked eerily similar to her except she wore her hair down, and an middle-aged man were there. Harry frowned - he thought that Dumbledore would be meeting with Ludo Bagman or Fudge, not people he had never seen before.

"Minerva, please take our guests to your office and meet with the others in the Great Hall. I will be along momentarily," Dumbledore requested. She nodded and the three of them departed.

Once they were alone, Dumbledore motioned for them to sit down. "I'm afraid there isn't much time, you three. And while I am posses a vague idea as to what this message is, why don't you let me know?"

Harry handed him the last post that Sirius had sent. "So we met this American in Hogsmeade and when I told Sirius about it he sent us that," he explained.

Dumbledore covered his mouth, but ended up dissolving into laughter.

"Ya think he's finally gone mental?" Ron whispered in Harry's ear.

"Ow," he added when Hermione elbowed him in the ribs.

"Sorry, quite sorry," Dumbledore said as he quieted himself. "It's just been a very interesting day."

Just then they heard the magically magnified voice of Snape issuing throughout the castle. "All students are to return to their Common Room and remain put until they are further notified by their Head of House. I repeat, all students are to return to their Common Room and remain put until they are further notified by their Head of House. Failure to do so is at the risk of your own life, plus a week scrubbing cauldrons.

"Professor?" Harry inquired with a confused look.

His lips curled into a grimace. "Yes, it appears our very interesting day just seems to be starting. You three must return to your Common Room."

"But professor, what's happening?" Hermione probed. "Is it about the dark witch we saw? Because, I just have to say from my own personal view, she seemed really nice."

Dumbledore hesitated. "Indeed you are correct, on both accounts, Ms. Granger. The Ministry has been informed that the witch known as the 'Dark One' - the one Sirius wrote of - was in Hogsmeade earlier. Aurors will be arriving shortly, if they are not already here, and will be completing a search of the castle grounds and Hogsmeade - although personally if I wanted to hide I would probably go to the Forbidden Forest."

"Wait, but you said 'on both accounts', Professor. Are you saying that the American witch isn't all bad?" Harry felt compelled to ask.

"She is a powerful witch and is guilty of former sins, but she is no longer dark. But," he added with a severe look, "this is something I must clear with the Ministry myself so please keep it yourselves for now."

"Of course," he said thoughtfully, "it may be good to let Sirius know."

"Sure thing, Professor," they chorused.

"All right, back to your Common Room now. I need to meet the professors in the Great Hall and try to work things out."

With that, Dumbledore led them out of his office and the three of them began heading towards the Gryffindor Common Room.

"Well, looks like I was right," Hermione said rather smugly. "I *knew* dark witches didn't use the word 'neato'."

"Blimey, looks like she's still available for me, then! How old do ya think she is? She didn't look much older than Percy, think I could swing it?" Ron asked eagerly.

A slap against the arm from Hermione gave him *her* opinion.

Harry, lost in thought, halted and his friends looked back at him.

"Harry?" Ron asked, concerned.

Harry looked up slowly and bit his lip. "I just realized…There's about to be a swarm of Aurors all over looking for this witch…"

"Oh Merlin, no!" Hermione breathed deeply. "Sirius is out there!"

"We've got to warn him," Harry stated in a determined voice.

"Yeah, but where he would be?" Ron asked.

"Harry! The castle is in a lock-down! It would be very dangerous for us to get out, especially if the Aurors catch us. We'll get in trouble for sure," Hermione said sternly

"Weren't you the one who said we needed to sneak out and bring him food?" Ron asked with a raised brow.

"Well, yes," she huffed. "I mean, I didn't say we *shouldn't*, I just said there's a big risk."

"Yeah, but the risk if they find Sirius is worst," Harry said, a shudder going through him at the thought of his newly acquired godfather being subjected to the dementors' kiss.

"All right," Hermione sighed. "But where do we go first? The Shack?"

Comprehension dawned on Harry's face. "The Forbidden Forest."

Off Ron and Hermione's shared looks of alarm he added, "Think about it! Dumbledore said if he wanted to hide he'd go to the forest. Sirius has hid in the Shack before, but he knows its probably not safe anymore since Snape found him there once already."

"Yeah, but Harry… The Forbidden Forest?" asked an apprehensive Hermione.

"We have to do it," Harry said a bit stubbornly. "I still have my cloak in my sack from Hogsmeade earlier - never got a chance to return it. We can leave right now."

Ron laughed and shook his head, leaving Harry and Hermione to give him a curious look.

"It's only the first weekend of term and we're already breaking the rules. I reckon this is going to be an exciting year," he grinned.

* * *

A/N:

Dearest readers, I have a question. The current summary for this story fit my original story line ~ Sirius would become Willow's houseguest in the cottage and it would be a very in-depth look at their two weeks together with cutsey romance fun (mind you, there *will* be more cutsey-ness at some point)…

Ha. Somehow I got to this crazy (but super fun and I love it) point where everything is blending and we've thrown in an OC witch, Giles, McGonagall, Dumbledore, Snape, the Trio, Lucius Malfoy, Draco + cronies, (fake) Mad-Eye, and the Ministry… I'm not sure if the current summary does the story justice anymore (even though I really do like it a lot). What do you think? Keep it or have any recommendations for what a new version should say?

Thank you, dearest readers :D

~PS: I have the next few chapters written and I can tell you that you will all be *very* pleased with chapter 20, me thinks ;D

~PSS: 'bitca' is one of my favorite quotes from BTVS so I *had* to reference it here, especially when this Trio reminds me of the 1st Season trio : )


	19. A Giant Shoe Would Be Rather Silly

**Chapter 19: A Giant Shoe *Would* Be Rather Silly**

Willow had to hold back a scream as she hurtled out of the Headmaster's window. She gripped the handle tightly and prayed to Gaia that she wouldn't fall off of the broom.

Sneaking a glance behind her, she hoped that Giles and Amelia would be all right. Dumbledore had assured her that Amelia would be safe since she is of pure-blood descent and that Amelia and Minerva would claim Giles as their guest. However, since Amelia and Giles were to hide in Minerva's office, hopefully that would not need to happen in the first place.

"Eeee!" she screeched as the broom hurtled closer to the Forbidden Forest. It was a shame that since she was afraid of plummeting to a horrible and sticky death, she couldn't take a moment to observe the beauty of the castle and its grounds - nor could she really take a moment to appreciate the stereotypical broom ride since she was scared out of her wits at being caught by some wizard po-pos.

Since there wasn't time for a flying lesson Dumbledore had bewitched his broom to carry her to the forest - with the idea that she would be able to hide there in safety. When she asked why she had to enter the forest, he assured her that the Aurors would be watching the skies and the castle grounds, but that they were less likely to enter the forest. Once the Aurors were gone Amelia would do a locator spell, pick her up, and they'd get the heck outta Dodge.

Where was Dodge, anyway?

No matter, because she had bigger things to worry about as she quickly approached the forest. Upon her further questioning, Dumbledore admitted that the forest was home to all sorts of dark creatures and that was why few wizards dared to enter it.

Great.

Once she reached the tree line her broom slowly descended and she hopped down, placing the broom under her arm.

With a gulp, she began to walk. This place felt a little bit Hellmouth-y and it definitely had the creepy vibe going for it - especially with the sun setting and the overall dank, darkness of the place.

Oh well, guess this was life on the run.

She winced, wondering if this is what Padfoot's life was like - wandering from place to place, no matter how dangerous it was, all because he wanted to live?

Shaking the thought out of her head, she lifted her stupid green robes up so she wouldn't trip on them. Willow did *not* need to be caring about Padfoot - Sirius Black, she corrected herself - and his style of living. That murderer definitely deserved everything he got.

Willow figured she had been walking for about thirty minutes when she heard something skittering across the dried leaves of the forest floor. By now she had conjured a little ball of light to help guide her in the pitch-black forest, and she waved it in her hand, straining her eyes against the shadows.

There! She heard the sound again, behind her this time. Willow whirled and flashed the light just in time to see a long, spindly leg flash back into the darkness.

Her heart was pounding and she tried in vain to control it - she knew that some creatures would only attack you if they could smell your fear.

Dammit though, that ten-foot leg seemed more than enough to get her heart rate up!

"Stay back," she commanded in a steady voice. "In the name of the Goddess, I command you to stay back!"

Willow waited with bated breath, ears straining to listen around her. After five minutes she heard nothing further and began walking again.

After another five minutes of maneuvering through the trees and across over-grown roots she ran into something cool and sticky.

"What the heck?" she asked, absolutely exasperated by her luck today. She sent her ball of light to fly upwards so she could see better and realized she had run into thick ropes. Her face was free but the rest of her - arms, legs, and torso, were stuck. It felt like being stuck to a very gross Velcro wall.

It was then that Willow heard the skittering noise again - like several pairs of feet running at once.

Or…

Four pairs of feet running at once.

She groaned as her mind comprehended her current reality - that she had just run into a giant spider web and that its owner was bringing out the welcome mat for its dinner party.

"Incendio," she incanted and bright mystical orange flames extended from her hands to jut out across the web. As they circled her she wasn't burned but they did burn the remaining fragments that trapped her.

She said a quick thank you to Hestia, Goddess of the Hearth, before a loud screeching noise erupted in front of her, causing her to stumble backwards. Whoa! This spider was the biggest she had ever seen - and coming from a monster expert like her, that was really saying something. Its legs were ten feet tall, carrying a bloated body, and a fierce-looking mouth.

"Uh, nice spidey?" she asked uneasily.

Its mouth flashed down towards her and she quickly rolled out of the way - thank goddess for having a vampire slayer as a best friend and fighting in graveyards an old hobby!

'_Now what would kill a giant spider?_' she thought as she raced in between two trees. '_A giant shoe?' _

Of course, a giant shoe *would* be rather silly…

Peering from behind her hiding spot she shouted, "Encoge!" and light flashed from her fingertips.

The spider stopped in mid-motion with its jaws open wide and slowly began decreasing in size. Twenty-feet tall… Then fifteen… Then ten… Then five…Until it was just a normal little spider.

"Normally," she told it, "I'm all about letting spiders and other bugs out of the house to roam free rather than killing them, but in your case?"

Her foot stomped down.

"Not so much," she finished with a smile

"You magic is impressive," rang out a deep voice that startled her.

Eyes scanning the area she lifted her ball of light higher and brightened the area. "Who's there?" she asked.

A man stepped out of the shadows.

Wait… Did he…Were those…?

Willow tried to cover her surprise at seeing an honest-to-goddess centaur in front of her. Blond hair brushed the tops of his shoulders and his blue eyes stared steadily at her. His upper torso was naked and it sat on the body of a horse.

"I am Magorian, leader of the centaurs," he stated simply. "And you are the Dark One."

"Um," she waved her hands nervously. "Sorta?" she said in a questioning tone.

"Long story, really," she continued. "I'm actually on the run from the wizards - and I'd really appreciate it if you didn't mention seeing me to them, by the way - but I'm not all black-haired evil and veiny anymore. See?" she asked as she lightly pulled on a strand of red hair.

Magorian stared at her with curiosity - or was that amusement? Willow had never met a centaur before. She just hoped he wasn't like the ones in Greek mythology, because they were really down for the killing and craziness.

"You realize," he said, "that we centaurs do not allow humans to pass through our territory - territory that was 'granted'," he emphasized the word like it tasted bad in his mouth, "by the Ministry of Magic."

"Um, sorry?" she said hesitatingly as she saw a dozen more centaurs step into view - each of them aiming a bow and arrow in her direction. "Listen, I'm just trying to get deep enough in the forest to hide from the Aurors who want to lock me up without even listening to my side of the story."

"Do not trust her," snarled a black-haired centaur. "She invades our area and will only bring more of the humans with her."

"No, I won't - well - I won't mean to. I promise I won't get in the way," she said hurriedly.

"I say we kill her for trespassing," the black-haired one said again.

"Bane," admonished a new centaur - this one with white-blond hair. "We cannot kill her. You know what role she has in reestablishing the balance."

Bane snorted in anger, but said nothing more.

"Balance?" she asked, curiosity piqued. After all, what did she have to offer the world?

"From beneath you it devours," stated the kinder centaur enigmatically. "You will help bring the balance. Much rides on you, Willow Rosenberg."

"What?" she asked, confusion and surprise inflecting her speech.

"Say nothing more Firenze!" scolded Magorian. "We are forbidden to tell the stars' secrets. It is not our place."

"But, I'm so confused. From beneath me it devours? Or from beneath you it devours? And what about a balance?" she asking in a pleading tone, unable to walk away with just a mysteriously stated sentence.

"Enough, human," Magorian commanded. "We will give you safe passage, but leave now."

"But-"

"Willow Rosenberg, do not tarry further, for we will give you no more information. However, I do suggest you head in that direction," Firenze stated as he pointed towards her right.

Willow shut her mouth and took his advice as she began jogging through the forest - more than a little freaked out by having the Centaurs stare her down while holding pointy arrows, especially that Bane jerk.

From beneath you it devours?

She had a role in reestablishing the balance?

On top of being puzzled by this new mystery, Willow knew she had lost some time talking to the centaurs - or rather being talked 'at' by the centaurs. She only hoped that the Aurors were still far away.

Just in case, she let her mystical light grow dim. It only allowed her to see right in front of her feet, but hopefully it would be less likely to alert anyone.

After another ten minutes of jogging in between closely grown trees, she darted to the side of a tree only to realize too late that a huge boulder lie in her path. With a cry of pain she smacked into it and fell backwards.

"Oh jeez," she moaned as she grabbed her throbbing knee. Strange though - her knee hurt but it should have hurt worse from running into rock. Actually, come to think of it, the rock hadn't felt very hard. Solid, yes, but not rock hard. A bit soft, actually.

A bird cry pierced the air and her 'rock' jerked up and beat its wings furiously. Instinctively she brightened her mystical light and gingerly stood up.

"Oh crap," she muttered. The creature in front of her was worst than a giant spider and worst than a dozen bow and arrow-aiming centaurs.

"Hey there Buckbeak," she said uncertainly. "Nice hippogriff, yeah."

He snapped at her and she yelped. "Okay, now that was just uncalled for!" she rebuked as she backed away.

Backed away… right into a firm chest and strong hands that gripped her upper arms suddenly.

"What are *you* doing here?" snarled Sirius Black.

* * *

**A/N:**

Thanks for all the reviews and suggestions re: the summary! I appreciate it, dearest readers : )

And… Yay! *claps hands* After many long chapters they finally get to meet up again! Likey?

_References_:

Wizard po-pos-- Does everyone say po-po to mean policeman? Wasn't sure so I thought I'd verify it here : )

Incendio Spanish- destructive fire (normal fire= fuego)

Encoger Spanish - to shrink (material)


	20. What You Deserve

**Chapter 20: What You Deserve **

**A/N:**

Dearest Readers, now that we are in chapter 20 *you* will start to get what you deserve ;)

(With the reunion, I thought I needed to insert the purty fanart by Methos again)

img src=".com/albums/af256/Luna_Del_Cielo/WillowsThief_" class="imageright" alt="Fan Art created by Methos" /

* * *

Sirius had been relaxing against a tree when saw a faint light approaching. Suddenly on edge he crouched and pulled out his wand -- You could never know what might come for you in the Forbidden Forest.

Like right now.

He was baffled to see the red hair of Willow come into view as she jogged towards his and Buckbeak's temporary settlement. What on earth could *she* be doing here? Was she looking for him? Or was she also hiding here - maybe she had a plan to go after Harry and needed to stay near the castle?

Silently he watched her run into Buckbeak and fall down. When she made a noise of pain and rubbed her knee a part of him ached to approach her and see if she was all right.

He had to squeeze his eyes shut and count to five just to stop himself from rushing over.

'She's a dark witch. She tried to destroy the world,' he repeated over and over again in an internal mantra.

When he opened his eyes Buckbeak had leapt up and made a furious cry - likely remembering all the bad things he had said about her. Not to mention, the poor hippogriff was probably angry that she was the reason they had left their cave - Buckbeak had liked hiding there the best.

Not sure what to do, he approached her and pocketed his wand. He hated to admit it, but he had been feeling guilty since sending that stupefying charm at her - even if she wasn't a good witch.

As she backed up right into him he swiftly caught her upper arms.

Sirius held Willow against him tightly so that she couldn't move.

Although it didn't hurt that holding her tightly against his body delivered a deep sense of pleasure in him.

"What are *you* doing here?" he snarled.

Vaguely, he realized how frail she felt against him - his tall frame nearly towered above her and her slender arms felt tiny in his hands. It made him remember how he had watched her over the last week secretly at the cottage - all those times he had caught her breaking down and crying when she thought she was alone. He wondered what could have hurt her so badly to make her act like that.

'_Who knows why crazy, dark witches do what they do?_' a part of him yelled.

"Padfoot?" she gasped.

His heart twisted to hear her call him by his old nickname - he had already forgotten that he had given her that name to call him by. He bent closer to answer her and in the process got a whiff of her hair - she smelled like berries.

"Yes. Now answer my question, dark witch, what are you doing here near Hogwarts?" he aggressively asked, forcing himself not to show any emotion. Those who used dark magic loved to prey on the weaknesses of others. If she figured out that *she* was his weakness… Well, that would put him at a disadvantage, needless to say.

"Dark witch?" she screamed. "Why you stupid idiot!" Something flashed - was it her? - and suddenly her arms felt red-hot. With a jerk he let her go and pulled out his wand.

Hands on her hips she glared at him with a furious expression. "You have some nerve, Padfoot - or Sirius Black or whatever your name is! How dare *you* call me a dark witch when everyone knows that you are a ruthless killer!" Her typically fair complexion darkened as the blood rose to her cheeks.

He scoffed, livid that the woman would bring such a thing up and talk to him like *he* was the bad guy here. "Me? You're the one with the nerve! You don't know anything, Willow!"

She blew out a puff of air and shook her head with a grimace. "*I* don't know what I'm talking about? I've been told everything. I know all about you - how you killed a dozen innocents and even betrayed your best friends!"

Sirius closed his eyes and took a deep breath, all the while telling himself that he did not need to be performing any Unforgivable Curses on *anyone* right now, even if she did have the nerve to bring up the worse event in his life.

"You don't know what you're talking about," he growled, faintly noting at the time that his wand hand trembled. "I never did that, I was framed! Peter Pettigrew did all that and left me to rot in Azkaban for TWELVE YEARS because of it!"

Willow paused, doubt flitting across her features. "You're lying. You're just saying all that to trick me."

"There's only one murderer here - and that's you," he replied darkly. "You're a killer. Almost tried to destroy the bloody world. You're the one who cannot be trusted."

She winced, as if his words physically wounded her. "You don't understand," she said softly.

"I don't need to understand! You betrayed me! You invited me into your home and for one of the few times in twelve years I actually felt happy! And then after starting to care about you I find out you're an evil witch!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, panting at his exertion of energy.

With wide eyes, she stared at him in shock and he realized that he said more than he intended.

Idiot! He hadn't wanted to let her know how he felt - and now she knew his weakness.

Then her stare turned from confusion to one of anger. "Wait a second. Are you accusing me of betraying you? No, I don't think so mister! You're the one who came into my home without telling me your real name. Or heck, more importantly that you're a wanted fugitive!" She stepped closer to him and her hands were clenched at her sides - like she was trying to stop herself from choking him.

"Well you-"

Willow took another step forward and slapped her fingers against his lips. "Oh no, Mister Escaped Convict Guy - I'm not done talking yet!"

His eyes widened at her sudden forcefulness and his body betrayed him by shivering slightly at the press of her fingers against his mouth.

"You acted sooo nice when you were in my house - laughing and comforting me when I went a little crazy and flirting with me - but it was all a lie! You were just using me during your wild life on the run! Not only *that* you had the gall to actually *knock me out* with your stupid little wand that I just want to shove down your throat!" she roared, he face flushed and almost as red as her hair.

She slowly pulled her fingers back and Sirius wondered how angry Remus would be with him if he acted on impulse and grabbed the dark witch's hand to kiss each of her fingers.

Very much so, Sirius assumed.

He gazed back down at her and was surprised by the amount of hurt that hid in her eyes. Sirius, after the posts from Remus, didn't think that a witch as dark as her could really have feelings. Evidentially, she did.

And even though Sirius knew he shouldn't care and knew he should just tie her up and send her to Dumbledore, a weight dropped into his stomach and he felt guilty for how harshly he had treated her when she left.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I'm sorry I hit you with that charm. It's just, I've been on the run for so long that it's hard for me to trust people. And when you started talking about your 'Scooby Gang' and how you hunted for dark magic users I figured you were after me - and perhaps I overreacted a little."

Her jade eyes softened somewhat as she looked at him in surprise.

"Of course," he added. "The only reason why I know now that you weren't after me is because the Ministry is after you - because you're the dark witch they're after."

"Oh, that is *it*," she huffed as she raised a hand and suddenly he felt himself fly back into a tree. He stood up and stared at her in shock - she had done the spell without a wand or even speaking!

No wonder everyone was afraid of her.

She approached him and her eyes were hardened once again. "You know, I should just tie you to this tree and leave you here for the Aurors to find!"

Jutting his chin, he responded snidely, "Yeah? Well I should be doing the same to you! After all, you deserve it!"

Now she was practically in his face, staring him down with a burning anger in her eyes. "Oh really? And just what does Sirius Black, notorious dark wizard, think I deserve?

Suddenly he was aware of how close she was to him again. His throat constricted as he gazed at her - observing in great detail the freckles that danced across her skin, how her face was shaped like a precious diamond, the way her eyes flashed with passion - even if it was passion for hating him at the moment - and how she would occasionally nibble on her bottom lip.

Sirius knew these were bad thoughts. Bad, bad thoughts…

Bollocks. At this moment, he didn't rightly care anymore.

"What do I think you deserve?" he asked in a deep, throaty voice.

He yanked her by her upper arms, spun her forcibly, and pushed her against the tree. With satisfaction he noticed how she trembled against him, lips parted slightly in surprise, and her dark eyes were gazing at him in anticipation.

"This," he answered before capturing her lips in a rough, bruising kiss.

* * *

**A/N:**

Liiiiiikey???? ;)

As always, thank you for reviewing!


	21. Peeping Gryffindors

**Chapter 21: Peeping Gryffindors**

"Harry, are you sure we're going the right way?" Hermione huffed as she ducked a low-hanging branch.

"Seems about right. After all, we passed what looked like the remains of a giant web sticking between two trees - and with the fresh burning smell you know that couldn't have happened naturally," he reasoned as he held in wand in one hand and his invisibility cloak in the other.

A shiver of fear went through Ron. "Yuck. Poor Sirius, I hope he didn't have a run in with one of Aragog's kids."

"I'm sure he's fine," Harry said reassuringly - as much to himself as to Ron. "Besides, when he wrote me earlier this summer he said he stole a wand, so at least he's armed."

Hermione's mouth widened in shock. "Harry! You didn't tell me that. I cannot believe that Sirius would do something so reckless and *clearly* illegal."

"Relax, Hermione. He pilfered it off of this family who had extra in their house - he said it was most likely the wand of an older family member who was deceased," he explained soothingly.

"Well that makes sense. It's not like the family needs some old dead guy's wand anymore, especially when Sirius needs it."

"Honestly Ron, you can be *so* insensitive sometimes," Hermione chided with a shake of her head.

"What?" asked a puzzled Ron who, after receiving no response, simply shrugged.

"Harry," he began. "You sure Sirius would be this far into the forest? We've been walking for a long time."

"Of course," Harry responded confidently.

After receiving dubious looks from Ron and Hermione he amended his statement. "Look, it makes sense for him to find a good hiding sport, so deeper into the forest makes sense. Plus we passed that herd of centaurs - and we *know* Sirius wouldn't be camping out near them, so he would likely be in the opposite direction."

"I don't think that's right," Ron said stubbornly, "that the centaurs can basically take ownership of the forest and always make with the threats towards humans."

"Really Ron, what do you expect them to do?" Hermione asked with an eye roll. "The Ministry has clearly shown its disdain for all the so-called lower class magical beings and have regulated the poor centaurs to just this specific forest. No wonder they're so hostile."

"Still," Ron grumbled.

"Wait!" Harry whispered. "Is it just me or is that a light up ahead?"

"You're right Harry! That has to be Sirius - unless there are any glow-in-the-dark animals in here?" Ron cautiously asked Hermione, knower of all Hogwarts knowledge.

Scrunching her face up in thought, she searched her mental library. "I don't believe so."

"Excellent," Harry said with a smile as the trio began heading towards the light.

As they got closer, Harry thought he heard shouting. "Do you guys hear that?"

"Sounds like yelling," Hermione observed.

"Blimey. You think that Sirius has finally gone mental with just Buckbeak as company?" Ron asked.

"Don't be a prat, Ron," Harry said, a bit miffed at Ron's joke - especially since it *was* a fear of his. He often worried about Sirius being out on his own, all alone.

Stupid Ministry.

"Maybe he's just talking to Buckbeak," Hermione added quickly, trying to avoid the boys from getting into an argument.

As the three of them walked closer they were still unable to see anyone thanks to the heavy foliage - but they could hear better now.

"Of course, the only reason why I know now that you weren't after me is because the Ministry is after you - because you're the dark witch they're after," Sirius said angrily.

Hermione gasped and looked at the boys. "You don't think…?"

"That the so-called 'Dark One' is with Sirius right now?" Ron finished for her.

"And that Sirius still thinks she's evil," sighed Hermione.

"And she probably thinks *he's* the evil one, if she's paid attention to the news at all. Just wonderful," Harry added sarcastically.

"Oh, that is *it*!" they heard a wrathful female voice shout and then it sounded like something solid smacked against a tree.

"Hurry," Harry encouraged and they sped closer to the scene.

"You know, I should just tie you to this tree and leave you here for the Aurors to find!" they heard Willow shout defiantly.

"Yeah? Well I should be doing the same to you! After all, you deserve it!" Sirius responded maliciously.

Harry, Hermione, and Ron skidded to a stop behind the tree line of a small meadow and crouched down to stay out of sight - it was never a smart idea to jump into the middle of a wizard fight without announcing yourself. From their vantage point they could see the profile of both Willow and Sirius, the former staring up at Harry's godfather furiously as he was leaned up against a tree.

"Oh really? And just what does Sirius Black, notorious dark wizard, think I deserve?" she asked him

"What should we do?" Hermione whispered. "We can't allow them to start a magical fight - especially with the Aurors out and about!" She stared at Harry and Ron expectantly and they shrugged.

"I guess we-" but Harry didn't finish his sentence, because the tone of his godfather changed and he felt compelled to look over at Sirius and Willow.

"What do I think you deserve?" Sirius asked her in a husky voice.

Then Sirius grabbed Willow's arms and shoved her against the tree.

Hermione breathed in sharply and stood up. "Come on!" she hissed, hand on her hip and staring at them. "We have to stop him before he hurts her!"

"Uh - Hermione?" Ron said, eyes glued back to Willow and Sirius.

"What?" she whispered back in an annoyed voice. But she followed his eyes anyway - and her mouth dropped open in shock.

Then she smirked.

"Looks like your future wife has already been claimed, Ron."

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A/N:

A fun little POV from the Trio and setting things up for the next chapter : )

Thank you for reading and reviewing!!


	22. Dear Miss Manners

**Chapter 22: Dear Miss Manners: "I Thought My Houseguest Was Evil…"**

**A/N:**

Mad thanks to the following readers for rec'ing this fic-- a href="." Mot/a, a href=". " cflat/a, a href="." POTENTIALlyAwesome/a

**Dearest Readers~ **Looks like the multiple chapter updates have ended, I am sad to say. Real life unexpectedly started to kick my bum yesterday with muuuucho stress and work. Icky, lo se. I think I am working tomorrow and out of town until Sunday afternoon, so it may be a couple days. Regardless, I have got a lot planned for this fic so it will be mi numero uno writing priority, I promise thee : )

Sorry for spoiling you and forcing some of you to go through withdrawals (Erica!) lol ;) - but at least today's is longer than a typical chapter!

Also, thank you to eeeeeveryone who has reviewed! I love you, reviews really do keep my interest in this story stirred up and I am very appreciative of you taking the time to review. Thank you, and please continue :D

* * *

"Oh really? And just what does Sirius Black, notorious dark wizard, think I deserve?" Willow asked him icily as she glowered at looked contemplative as he stared at her and it made her nervous how his eyes would dart around - as if he was taking notice of her every detail."What do I think you deserve?" Sirius repeated in a deep, throaty voice.

The way he spoke… Goddess, she hated that it made a shiver ripple down her spine.

Then without notice, Sirius grabbed her arms and spun her until her back rested against the tree.

Willow trembled when she saw the hungry look in his eyes, and her heart began pounding as she wondered what Sirius Black was going to do to her."This," he answered, before capturing her lips in a rough kiss.

Willow was so surprised by the forceful kiss that she returned it - although timidly at first because she was so shocked by the turn of events and because she knew kissing Sirius Black was a dark, dangerous thing.

However, as one hand came to gently cradle her face and the other wrapped around her waist, Willow began to hungrily return the kiss. His lips were softer than she imagined, his facial hair tickled slightly, and being in his arms felt so *right* for some reason. Sirius' tongue lightly probed along her lips and her mouth opened in invitation. A groan was elicited from her as he plundered her mouth and Willow reached up and began running her hands through his long hair.

Gentle teeth nibbled her lips and soon departed to brush kisses alongside her jawbone until reaching her ear. There Sirius sucked her lower earlobe and Willow made a noise of pleasure before grabbing him and redirecting his efforts back at her lips.

Pressing against her further, Willow became suddenly aware of just how much Sirius was enjoying her company. With a moan realized just how much she wanted him, as well. After everything she had gone through over the last day, she didn't really give a damn about his history - she just wanted him.

It had been too long since she had experienced anything like this moment.

Tara's face flashed in her mind.

Four and a half months. That's how long it had been since she wanted somebody this bad.

Automatically, Sirius was pushed roughly from her - Willow wasn't even conscious that she had done it.

She stood there shaking, her back against the tree and her hands gripping it for support.

What on Goddess' green earth had she been thinking? What kind of person was she? How could she treat Tara's memory like that? Not only was Sirius Black *not* the kind of man you could take home, he was a *man*! Hey, gay now and all that-- after all, hadn't her feelings for Xander and Oz just been a fluke? What was she - crazy? What was wrong with her? Why did he make her feel like this?

Oh, Goddess.

"Willow? I'm sorry, what's wrong?" he asked in a surprised tone that sounded a little confused.

Hah. What's wrong? Such a simple question for such a complicated answer.

"Everything," she growled, feeling a bit of her dark side awaken. Distantly she realized it had been two days since she had properly meditated and she could feel the darkness within her come closer to the surface. Her emotions felt all over the place: shame, desire, guilt, grief, anger, pleasure. The intensity of it all even had her breathing becoming elevated.

"Look, I'm sorry," he stated as he stood slowly, all the while looking quite abashed. "I shouldn't have done that."

Willow stared at his lips the whole time he spoke, unable to stop herself from thinking about how much she had enjoyed the moment - yet wincing at the same time for her betrayal towards Tara.

She felt dirty inside - and outside - for what she had done.

"Darn tootin' you shouldn't have done that! Goddess!" she exclaimed in a frustrated voice. "Who do you think you are?"

She paused a beat and then answered her own question. "Oh, that's right, Sirius Black. Famed murderer and apparently thinks he can just grab people and kiss them."

His eyebrows shot up in surprise before furrowing in anger. "Excuse me, but I happen to remember *you* kissing me back, little Miss Dark Witch who tries to destroy the world," he yelled back defensively.

A little nagging feeling tickled her brain… He thought she was a dark witch? Maybe she should show him.

Willow closed her eyes and conjured a ball of fire in her hand. It would serve him right if she just burned down this whole damn forest, full of spiders, threatening centaurs, and an arrogant, wicked wizard.

"Sirius! Willow!" she heard a young girl's voice call out.

Glancing up, she saw three teenagers approaching them - the same three she met earlier in Hogsmeade. Surprised at seeing them, she felt herself pull back from her darker thoughts and allowed her fire to recede until it was gone.

"Harry! What are you three doing here?" Sirius chided, anger in his voice accompanied by an undercurrent of fear. "You have to get away from here - and her," he added as he glanced at her.

"Of right, because they have nothing to fear from you," she remarked sarcastically, annoyed that he would continue to treat her like a Big Bad.

"No, they don't -" Sirius started to shoot back until the boy with untidy, black hair - Harry, she thought Sirius called him - interrupted him.

"Wait! Sirius, Willow - It is Willow, right?" he asked unsurely.

She nodded, curious as to why the three teens were in the Forbidden Forest and just what he was going to say.

"Ok, real quick before either of you start arguing again-"

"- Or snogging," she thought she heard the redhead mutter glumly.

"- We need to tell you the truth about each other."

Her eyes narrowed at Harry suspiciously. "What?"

First Harry turned to Sirius. "Listen, Sirius, we just met with Dumbledore and he said that Willow's all right and she's good now."

"Yes, and Sirius was framed and wrongfully sent to Azkaban," added the girl.

"What?" both a bewildered Sirius and Willow exclaimed.

"How do you know that he's innocent?" Willow asked.

"'Cause he's my godfather," Harry said proudly as he went to stand by Sirius. "And the three of us were there when we heard Peter Pettigrew confess. Sirius never did anything - even Dumbledore believes him."

"Yeah, and he's one of the most powerful wizards out there, so he knows when people are telling the truth," added the redhead.

"And you're telling me that Dumbledore vouched for her?" Sirius asked skeptically while eyeing her.

"Yeah, he said that she's no longer dark," Harry answered as he gazed at back and forth at Willow and Sirius with a worried expression.

Willow took a deep breath, feeling ashamed at how close she had been only moments ago to proving them wrong. Then the full realization of the teens' words hit her - all that anger and disappointment she had been feeling earlier hadn't been necessary.

Sirius Black *wasn't* a dark murdering wizard.

She scrunched up her eyes in embarrassment as she realized all the cruel things she had said to him - especially what she said about betraying his best friends, now that she knew those friends had been betrayed by this Peter person.

Not to mention she found herself feeling especially relieved and pleased to hear this new information - even if she was still conflicted about Sirius regarding other things.

The girl huffed in annoyance as she gestured towards them. "Well, what are you two waiting for? Shouldn't you both be apologizing to each other by now?"

Willow's lips quirked up at the overall bossy tone of the girl and she looked at Sirius, seeing he looked equally contrite as she felt.

"Um." Willow took a step towards him and stopped, kind of wishing the earth would just swallow her up right about now. Not to mention, she was even more embarrassed about their kiss - she hoped the kids hadn't seen it.

"I'm, ah, sorry, Sirius. For thinking you were evil and saying all that earlier," she finally forced out.

Running a hand carelessly through his hair, he gave her a grim look. "Yeah, I'm sorry too - for saying all that and thinking you were evil."

Willow nodded slowly, not sure what to do at this point. She didn't think Miss Manners had a protocol for this type of situation: Dear Miss Manners, I thought my houseguest was an evil murdering wizard, but shucks - turns out he isn't. What do I do now?

If only there was a Miss Manners of the supernatural world - she would probably be in great in demand.

She saw the girl roll her eyes. "Okay, well now that that's finished, we came here to warn you, Sirius."

"Warn me?" he asked cautiously.

"Yes, Dumbledore told us that the Aurors are coming to look for the dark witch," Harry threw Willow an apologetic look. "We figured you were out here so we came to warn you."

"What?" he exclaimed as his eyes darted wildly, taking on that same look he had when he had left her cottage yesterday. "I've got to get out of here."

"Wait, Dumbledore told me to come here and hide. He said there's an anti-app-something ward and they'll be watching the grounds and the skies for me," Willow hurriedly said.

Sirius began shaking his head furiously. "No, no, and *no*. I need to get out of here. I will not let them give me the Dementor's Kiss," he said frantically.

"The Dementor's Kiss? What's that?" asked Willow in a curious tone, wondering just what would get Sirius to begin acting so frightened.

Sirius paused from collecting his supplies to look up at her with a pained expression. He was seemingly unable - or unwilling - to answer her.

"It's where they let a dementors suck out a person's soul. It's the punishment for only the darkest of wizards - and they think Sirius is that dangerous," answered Harry in a tone that reflected his disgust at such an action.

Willow took in a deep breath, unable to believe what she had just heard. "You're telling me that they - as in your magical government - think it is *okay* to do that to a fellow human being? To let a demonic creature steal a soul?" she asked, each word icier than the last.

"Yes," Sirius said darkly. "It's why I'm always moving - I won't let those bastards take me."

Staring at Sirius, seeing the haunted look in his eyes and his strained expression, she felt such a surge of anger at those Ministry people. Willow admitted that her brain decided to take a rain check on what she felt about Sirius - too many confusing twists and turns had developed - but she did know that she felt something for him. Now that she knew he was innocent, she realized that Padfoot, the Sirius Black that had been her houseguest, had been a true representation of his character - and he was a good man.

"And to think - they all think I'm a monster," she said in a quiet, angry voice.

Sirius met her eyes and smiled slightly. "I don't think you're a monster," he said softly.

Willow smiled back, more appreciative of his words than he probably knew. "Thanks," she responded as she lowered herself to sit on the grass - her knee was still aching and standing had not been helping.

"You kids better beat it," Sirius commanded. "It won't do if you three get found with not just *one* notorious outlaw, but two."

"But Sirius, we can help," Harry said eagerly. "Ron, Hermione, and I could help cover for you or something."

Aha - So those were the names of the girl and her fellow redhead.

As Sirius and Harry began arguing, with some comments thrown in by Ron and Hermione, Willow settled herself carefully into the lotus position. Her nerves were clearly frayed and she needed to take just a moment to connect back with nature and her magic. Breathing in deeply, she began the process of finding that internal part of her where the magic lived and she began traveling with it as it coursed through her and then seeped into the ground that she sat on. She followed it as it coursed through the grass, past the three wizards and witch - although she did take a moment to observe how the magic moved differently within them- and into the greater parts of the forest.

She loved her meditation moments - they proved just how truly connected the earth was.

As her reach spread farther, she gasped as she felt herself mentally run into four bodies that shared the same brand of magic that Sirius and the others possessed.

Wizards.

And they were getting closer.

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**A/N:**

I think you all know what's going to happen next … Yup, it's the four judges from American Idol, searching for new talent! ;)

Reviews make my day muy happy. Thanks :D


	23. The Escape

**Chapter 23: The Escape**

A special thanks to a href=". " Lysea/a for rec'ing this :D

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Willow's head jerked up to look at the arguing group with wide eyes. "They're here," she said in a hushed voice.

"Harry, I appreciate your offer but-" Sirius blinked and looked at Willow warily, along with Harry, Hermione, and Ron.

"What did you say?" he asked tensely.

Pressing her palms against the ground, she closed her eyes again. "I can feel them moving. They're not far - and heading this way." Mentally snatching her ball of light down to eye level, she lowered its glow until it cast only enough light to see each other's faces.

"How do you *know* that?" asked Ron with an amazed expression. "Are you psychic or something?"

Willow shrugged humbly - after seeing all the magic in Hogwarts she couldn't understand why someone from that world would be interested in her magic. "Everything is connected - you, me, the spider on that tree - and I can feel them walking across the earth."

Ron jumped at the mention of the word spider. "What? Where?"

Harry choked back a laugh.

"Oh! No, no, just a little one - a normal one. And it's a few trees over," she said quickly, although she did very little to erase the distressed expression on his face.

Sirius sighed heavily and turned back to his godson. "Harry, no more of this. You need to leave. Now," Sirius ordered in a stern tone.

"But-"

"No. I'll be fine," he interrupted - but his grim tone indicated the reverse of his statement.

Pulling Harry into an awkward one-armed hugged, he whispered quietly, "Your loyalty and bravery remind me very much so of your father, Harry."

Willow noticed Harry give Sirius a bittersweet smile and she wondered what happened to Harry's father.

"Thanks," Harry murmured.

"Now you three get out. Be careful - and make sure you use that cloak."

Very reluctantly the trio of teens slunk back into the shadows and Willow turned to Sirius. "How do we hide from them?" she asked, hoping that his expertise in the wizarding world and previous arrest might give her a clue of what to do.

He kept his back turned to her while he hooked his pack onto Buckbeak. "Aurors are dark wizard catchers and damned good at their job. They can sense magic use and they have a load of spells for situations like this. We could hide but they've got spells to reveal people. We could also fight our way out but I don't want to hurt anyone."

"Me either," she agreed as she bit her lip in worry. Mentally searching, she felt them approach closer and allowed her ball of light to fade, leaving her and Sirius in darkness.

"So basically if we do any magic they will find us?" Willow asked after a moment.

"Yeah," he said glumly.

She glanced at the hippogriff and was struck by an idea. "Well, why can't we just fly away on Buckbeak? That's super non-magical."

"But Dumbledore told you that they would be watching the skies," Sirius reminded her.

"True, but what if it's hard to see in the first place?" she asked with a grin.

"What are you thinking? Cloud cover?" he asked while looking up.

"Yup. Well, except fog, technically, but whatever, it's the same thing," she said in a rush of breath.

Sirius nodded at her appreciatively. "So you create the fog and then we get away on Buckbeak so quickly that no one will have time to locate you through your spell?"

Willow nodded. "Nice," he commented with a grin.

Willow knelt down on the ground and began preparing for the spell using some stones as markers. She was pleased as punch with her idea because now they could get away without hurting anyone plus it was a simple spell to do fog cover, so she wouldn't have to worry about going overboard with the magics.

Head bowed, Willow concentrated on the warmth of the magic inside her and sent it to reach out in reverence for assistance. Once she was centered, she began the incantation.

"Nut, Goddess of the Sky,

please listen to my cry.

Give us cover in the form of mist,

So thick we seemingly don't exist."

Power struck her and she could feel the magic of the sky - of darkness and light, of clouds and stars. She channeled this power back into the air as she concentrated on imagining the currents of air heating to conflict with the now ice cold ground. There was an explosion as a these two forces met and soon the area was engulfed by a heavy, thick coat of fog.

Willow made a mental note to reflect on this experience later - her momentary contact with the Sky goddess made her think of her own conflicting powers of dark and light.

Shouts were heard behind them as Sirius pulled her gently to her feet. "Willow! That was wonderful!"

"Thanks," she muttered humbly.

"Come on, give me your hand and I'll get you seated on Buckbeak," he offered

Suddenly feeling very shy, Willow extended her hand - but she refused to let herself acknowledge the strength she found there or how warm it felt.

He hoisted her onto Buckbeak's back and climbed in front of her. "Ok, Buckbeak, let's head north for the mountains. And Willow, you might want to hang on; Buckbeak can get a little wild sometimes."

"Oh, okay," she said, trying to keep the nervousness out of her voice. She scooted closer to her and gently embraced him from behind - feeling a bit awkward to be holding him so intimately.

"You might want to hold on tighter than that, if you don't want to fall off," Sirius said in a sudden teasing voice.

Willow frowned in response. "I'm perfectly fine," she said.

"All right," Sirius drew out to humor her.

Then with a sharp jerk, Buckbeak launched himself into the air and Willow reacted by clutching Sirius tightly, all the while holding back a scream.

Sirius just chuckled in response.

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A/N:

Okay, I'm not gonna lie… I forgot today was rhyming day until tonight and wanted to get in a post only because I love rhymes haha ;)

So… humor me? ;)

_**Resources**_: .org/wiki/Nut_(goddess)


	24. A False Sense of Security

_**Chapter 24: A False Sense of Security**_

_**A/N:**_

_I apologize, dear readers. I posted a short chappie on Sunday because I knew this week would be crazy - and it was. Luckily it was crazy in a good way (as in I finally have a good-paying full-time job after 4 months of being unemployed!!! No more ramen for me!!!). The bad news is that posts will now be less frequent -- but they *will* occur, please just be patient!! _

_Also, many thanks to *everyone* for reviewing!!_

* * *

_Willow had to force herself not to shriek as Buckbeak took to the skies. Faintly, she heard Sirius chuckling and she bet he had enjoyed her little freak out a moment ago. Quickly they made their way above the trees and a blast of chilly night air had her shivering - witch robes weren't as warm as they looked, sadly._

"_Cold?" Sirius queried._

"_Just a little," she admitted as she found herself subconsciously clinging to him and basking in his warmth._

_She felt him rub against her two hands that were clasped around his stomach. "Sorry, it'll only get worse as we increase in altitude. Wish I had some gloves for you - your hands feel ice cold."_

_Willow felt extremely fortunate that he couldn't see her face flame up in embarrassment - him gently caressing her hands like that was creating an effect that Willow found unexpected._

"_It's ok," she murmured, wondering how long this uncomfortable - in more ways than one- trip was going to take._

_Without warning a flash of red light pierced the fog from below and hit Buckbuck's underside. The hippogriff began plummeting as both Sirius and Willow yelled in surprise._

"_Oh my Goddess! What happened?"_

_Sirius began cursing under his breath. "Damn Aurors must have noticed us! Buckbeak! Buckbeak!" _

_Realizing the hippogriff wasn't going to respond, Sirius spoke again to Willow. "Looks like we'll need to fight our way out and then run for it."_

_Willow bit her lip in worry. The thought of hurting another human being almost made her feel physically ill. But she didn't get a chance to respond because their rapid descent ended ten feet above the foggy ground and then they were gently lowered._

"_Willow Rosenberg, the witch known as the Dark One, submit yourself to the British Ministry of Magic for questioning concerning your misuse of dangerous magic, or face the consequences!" boomed a deep, male voice._

"_Recede," Willow whispered and the fog receded several hundred feet away from her in a circular formation. Sure, the fog was a bit useful but considering she couldn't see the man who was trying to arrest her meant it was no longer necessary._

_Standing shoulder to shoulder, Willow and Sirius surveyed their surroundings. A tall, black man with a gold hoop - the one presumably addressing them - stood directly in front of them, a petite witch with short, fuchsia hair stood off to his side, a grey-haired man stood to their right, and a middle-aged brunette man stood to their left._

"_More are on their way, so it is my suggestion that you come quickly and quietly," stated the dark-skinned wizard - but from his tone Willow could tell it was no mere suggestion._

"_Listen," she began in her sweetest voice - the 'softer side of Sears' Willow'_, she thought idly. "I think there's been a mistake. I'm not a dark witch. But I also don't want to go with you folks because the idea of being locked up with some soul-sucking demons is really not on my to-do list." She smiled brightly. "So, is it okay if we just go?"

The wizards were looking at her like she was crazy.

"You really expect us to fall for that?" exclaimed the grey-haired man.

"It's the truth!" she countered indignantly.

"Dawlish! Outbursts to a minimum, please," chided the apparent spokesman for the group.

"Wotcher, Kingsley!" cried out the only witch to the black wizard. "The Dark One's with Sirius Black!"

"When they aim for you, dodge the curses, and do whatever you can to get out of here," Sirius whispered urgently.

Kingsley's eyes, along with the others, widened in alarm. "You're right, Tonks. Capture, not kill!" he ordered to his team as they all raised their wands.

Willow gasped as she rolled past a jet of red light. "Hey now! I. Am. Not. EVIL!" she screamed. "Could you get that through your thick, stupid heads!"

"We may be British, but I think our conversational tea time is over, Willow!" Sirius called and she saw a burst of blue light leave his wand and hit the grey-haired wizard they called Dawlish.

Dodging another stream of light, Willow cursed silently. She knew she should return fire and get them out of here, but she was scared. Entering into the battle would force that darker part of her to rise - she knew it. Already she could feel it lurking, outraged by the gall of these wand wizards to attack her and Sirius - especially whenever she thought about the Dementor's Kiss that Harry had spoken of.

"Petrificus Totalus!" shouted the crazy-haired witch in front of her. Willow leaped sideways but the magic still hit he,r and suddenly her body went rigid as her arms and legs snapped together.

"Wotcher! That was brilliant!" the young witch -did the Kingsley guy call her Tonks? What kind of name was that, anyways?- cried gleefully.

Willow tried to shout back but she found herself mute as well. Since she fell on her side she could see Kingsley and the fourth Auror battling Sirius. She realized, suddenly, that while she would likely get released after her capture (eventually, she hoped), Sirius would get no such treatment. His capture meant a fate worse than death.

Overwhelmed with a powerful sense of fury, Willow found her limbs freed from the witch's spell.

"What -" began the shocked woman but Willow didn't let her finish. With a swing of her hand, she knocked the Auror out with a mere thought and set for Sirius.

Seeing that Kingsley was about to fire a lucky shot at Sirius' back, Willow yanked her arm up and shouted, "Orior!" A sheet of rock shot up between Sirius and Kingsley, effectively protecting her new friend.

"Thanks!" he shouted as he hit the fourth Auror with a red hex.

Running to Sirius she stood by his side and established a shield around them before Kingsley could make his way around.

"I don't want to leave Buckbeak - some Ministry prats put him on an execution list because he's supposedly dangerous. Think there's anyway we can take him with us?" Sirius asked with hopeful eyes.

Shooting a glance towards the unconscious hippogriff, she grimaced. "Really? Buckbeak? Dangerous? Never would have thought," she said dryly.

Sirius grinned and shrugged. "Maybe you're just not an animal person."

With narrow eyes, she replied. "Animals love me - just ask Ms. Kitty Fantastico. Your beast seems to be the only exception."

"Besides," she added. "Just how do we plan on taking him if *we* don't even know where we're going."

"True," he admitted as he and Kingsley began dueling with their wands.

Willow bit her lip worriedly as she observed the two wizards. So far, so good. She hadn't really hurt anyone or turned all black-haired and vein-y - Maybe they would make it out of here okay after all.

A dozen popping noises sounded through the meadow that they were located in.

With a groan, she bit her tongue as a dozen wand-wielding wizards popped in - Literally.

Pulling up power from the earth, she reinforced their shields to protect the three of them.

"Last chance, Dark One and Black." rumbled Kingsley.

Sirius began breathing heavily as he realized how out numbered they were. "I won't go with them. I won't," he stated determinably.

Catching his eye, she saw the pure fear he felt at the idea of what his capture meant. She took a deep breath and prayed to the Goddess to protect her - not just from the Aurors but from herself as well.

"I won't let them take you," she promised him fiercely.

All at once, a dozen hexes and curses hit their protective shield and Willow forced them to rebound to their casters. Half of the Aurors were taken out by their own spells, leaving only six to attack.

Willow focused on Kingsley, since he was Mr. In Charge and all. Ropes jetted out of his wand towards he and she muttered under her breath and transfigured them into a jet of freezing water that hit the wizard right in the face. Upon impact, the water froze around his upper body, thus cutting off his ability to use his wand.

To the wizard closest to her she cast a twenty foot hole in the ground - right below his feet. With a shrill scream of surprise he fell and she quickly closed the hole over - leaving, of course, a small tunnel of air supply to make its way through.

"Reducto!" cried a voice in front of her.

"Willow!" Sirius shouted in warning, only five feet to her left.

Looking up, Willow realized a jet of red light was shooting her way. In the next moment, she was pushed harshly onto the ground.

Panting, her eyes searched for the cause of her fall - landing on Sirius Black, now laying flat on his back, eyes closed, and his expression frozen in a twisted look of pain.

Instinctively, she cast up a protective shield but her mind immediately cut off the logical part of her, forcing her emotions to the forefront of her decision-making.

Seeing Sirius laying there, hurt - maybe even dead - because some stupid magical government people refused to believe in the age-old theory of 'innocent until proven guilty' made her blood boil. She snarled loudly and even to her own ears it sounded ferocious and primal. She got to her feet - although technically she knew she was floating several inches from the ground - and stared at the remaining wizards. Some must have fixed themselves, because now nine met her gaze.

"Fools," she hissed. "You act without thinking. This man is innocent of any wrongdoing yet you are ready to give a demon his soul."

A fierce wind blew through her hair and her green robes billowed about her. So much *anger* coursed through her veins that she thought she would explode. These people before her were no better than Warren - shooting an innocent bystander in hopes of claiming their 'supposed' guilty party. They were cowards, trusting in leaders who practiced deceit. After all, if the Ministry was in league with these dementor creatures who knows what else they do.

It was up to Willow to stop them.

Mirroring her emotions, the sky swirled with dark clouds and howled with vengeance. She cackled as the wizards began using their silly wooden sticks to fire upon her but she easily redirected the spells back at them - forcing the Aurors to leap away.

One man screamed at her, his freckled face reddening with rage, as he shot a curse at her. Her wards easily held and Willow rolled her eyes. "My, my, aren't you the uptight old man? Don't tell me you have a stick up your butt?"

He stared at her, baffled by her words.

She grinned wickedly and flicked her fingers, forcing the man to yelp as his wand began spanking him in quick succession.

"What?" she asked innocently, although her eyes held a malicious glint. "Doesn't everyone like a good spanking?"

To several of the wizards facing her, she conjured thick vines from the ground that grabbed their wrists and ankles and forced them to fall face first into the dirt.

They all moaned in pain and Willow felt a deep sense of satisfaction. After all, these people were part of a decidedly bad organization and they had hurt Sirius, wanted to kill Buckbeak, and wanted to capture her. They deserved it.

Casting a few more spells to desist several more fighting wizards, Willow felt a fiery pain in her back as she flew twenty feet in the air. Just in time, she cushioned her fall with magic and turned to face her attacker.

Her lips curled in cold fury as she recognized his blond hair and portly frame - it was the same man who hurt Sirius. Thinking on the times she observed Buffy's training sessions (okay, and that time she watched Kung Fu Panda with Xander), Willow curled her fingers into tiger claws and slashed them downwards. Even though she thirty feet away, deep wounds in the form of claw marks erupted across the man's face and over his torso. Blood spurted from the deep wounds and he wailed in agony as she shot forward to stand in front of Sirius, and thus closer to her attacker. From the closer vantage point she saw tears from in the corners of his eyes as he groaned in suffering.

Willow gasped as the feeling of his pain traveled through the earth and into her. Glancing around, she saw that sixteen wizards and witches were laying on the ground - all alive - but in great pain.

Because of her.

"Goddess," she said softly as she took in her handiwork.

"Oh Goddess," she said mournfully. "All I want to do is go home!" she cried out and flung her arms upwards.

So many months of training… So many months of meditation… And for her to end it like this?

There was a loud roar that came from behind her. Turning, she saw a portal tearing its way into the air. Although she didn't understand quite how she did it, she did know it was of her doing and it would take her home. She levitated Buckbeak and pushed the still-unconscious hippogriff into it, grabbed Sirius into her arms, and jumped into the portal.

* * *

And you thought Sirius and Willow were going to be gifted with a simple escape, now didn't ya? ;)

Feedback is always welcome and highly encouraged!! : D More reviews = more pressure I feel to keep updates consistently occurring ;)

Orior - Latin for 'rise', according to /free_online_?from=Englishto=Latin


	25. Sunnydale Welcomes DirtyHot Aragorn Guy

**Chapter 25: Sunnydale Welcomes Dirty-Hot Aragorn Guy**

A/N:

Dearest Readers: Since I have been naughty with the severe lackage of updates, I wanted to give you another update! Especially because I wanted to leave you with a lighter chapter since 24 was definitely not hugs and bunnies. Hope you enjoy the introduction into Sunnydale ;) (*and* this chapter is one of my longest, so hope that pleases you!)

* * *

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Tumbling from the portal, Willow landed heavily into the backyard of the Summers' household. Sirius was cradled in her lap and Buckbeak was slowly stirring. The moon was softly fading into the West and Willow realized that with the eight-hour time difference it must be around five in the morning. Judging the darkness of the house, Buffy and Dawn were still sleeping right now.

Her heart lurched as a wisp of hair blew in front of her eyes - black hair. Tears fell freely from her eyes as Willow realized the severity of her relapse. Pressing her palms against the earth she rocked back and forth while repeating the mantra that Amelia had taught her. Hesitantly, she touched her inner magic and found a great deal of anger still there, just waiting for lash out.

Too slowly, she realized how the attack on Sirius had reminded her so much of Tara - an innocent bystander caught in the line of fire. That thought, coupled with her other outrages against the Ministry of Magic, provided easy fodder for her dark side to build upon. She had proven that in a highly emotional state, she still was unable to control herself.

With a pang, Willow realized that she had been weak in a moment where she should have proved her strength. After four months, she still could not control the darker side of her magic.

Her emotions rolled within her like an angry sea and her breath caught in her throat. Was this what she could expect for the rest of her life? Like acid, a drop of bitterness burned through her as she thought of those who she would have disappointed with her actions. Giles, who took her to safety because he believed in her. Amelia, who had patiently trained her to control her darker impulses. Not to mention the kind wizard she had just met, Dumbledore, who immediately had believed that she was inherently good.

Uncalled for, his past words whispered through her mind, striking her heart and soul.

"_Willow Rosenberg is not a threat to us, or our community. When I look at you, I see a gray shimmering sea. Waves of black magic and white magic roll within you, each fighting to take hold. But the truth is neither can take full control and the only true control you will have is when those two forces cease being the magical equivalent of oil and water and begin mixing together, for both are a part of you. You are not the Dark One, Willow Rosenberg, unless you wish it to be so and relinquish that control. But I can see from your mind that that is not your true desire - and it is choice that separates the good from the evil_."

She held back a sob as she reflected on those words and realized that she had relinquished her control… Yet his words gave her hope as well. Willow could still take matters into her own hand, she could still make the choice to do good.

No, not that she could.

She *would* make the choice to reclaim both sides of her magic and claim control.

With a sigh she opened her eyes, satisfied that she had calmed herself - for now. Now she began to observe Sirius, noting that he was still unconscious. Slowly she passed her hand over him, magically checking out possible internal injuries. With a wince, she saw that the 'Reducto' spell had managed to blast the bones in his left shoulder and arm to pieces.

Seeing the damage, she felt especially thankful for Sirius saving her - alongside with a good helping of guilt, as well, now that she saw what pain he incurred for saving her.

Knowing that there would be too many questions if she took him to a hospital - not to mention Willow had left her passport and everything in her cottage - she realized that the best way to save him would be magic. Although she wasn't as skilled in that area, Amelia had been teaching her a lot over the summer since Willow thought it would prove helpful to Buffy.

While winded, so to speak, from her display of power only moments earlier, Willow knew that she had to proceed quickly before Sirius woke up or his bones began setting wrong.

Concentrating deeply on imagining the bones of Sirius righting themselves - thank the Goddess that Willow got an A in anatomy! - Willow began pushing the flow of earthly energy into Sirius. Throughout her trance she repeated the following in a hushed tone:

"Aceso, Blessed Be

Send forth your healing energy."

Lost in her words, Willow barely noted the Sirius' gasp of pain as the spell began to mend his bones. Instinctively she grasped his hand to comfort him and continued to concentrate on his healing, even giving some of her own energy to the man.

She was unsure how much time had past, but even though her eyes were closed she sensed the sun begin its ascent into the dark sky. Once she felt the spell complete, she was completely drained of energy and Willow allowed herself to finally descend into the comforting arms of sleep.

~*~*~*~*

"Heya Dawnster!" Xander shouted up the stairs after he opened the front door of the Summers' home. "Ready for the ride to school?"

A frustrated scream was his only response.

"Ah, okay then," he commented with a grin as Buffy walked into the living room. "Lemme guess - teenage girl issues?"

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Dawn is currently having an 'All-My-Clothes-Suck-and-My-Life-Sucks' kind of day."

"Aha! I heard once, from a certain blond-haired friend of mine, that the only cure for those days is a trip to the mall," Xander joked with a knowing smile.

Dawn's head peaked out at the top of the stairs. "Exactly! That's exactly what *I've* been telling her, Xander!"

Buffy smiled sweetly. "Sure, Dawn. We can go once you've made some money of your own. I heard the Doublemeat Palace is hiring."

"Ew!" they heard Dawn yell from her room. "As if I want to smell like you did!" After a momentary pause she added, "Not that *you* smelled or anything. I meant how the other, less cooler people smelled."

"Yeah-huh. Right. Nice try, but still not taking you shopping," Buffy snorted.

"Not to mention, major loss of points for using the '90s phrase 'as if! Geez, Buff, what are you teaching the girl?" he asked her incredulously.

Buffy shrugged. "Hey, she may be made of my blood, but I cannot be held responsible for what comes out of that girl's mouth."

Dawn thudded down the stairs. "Have you seen my Biology book? I can't find my Biology book!" She began throwing couch cushions up and looking behind chairs. "Oh my God, I have a test today and me, and Kit, and Carlos were s'posed to study during lunch, and oh my God my life suuuuucks!"

Xander's eyes widened at her frantic behavior. "Dawnster, no worries! You're going to school. Lots of books there. In fact, I hear they even have a whole room of them and, thanks to my checking out of the building plans, that room is not evil - Besides your standard library book reading' and learnin' evil. Unlike back in *my* day when you couldn't check out a book without some hell demon emerging from a pit of darkness and…" Xander trailed off at seeing Dawn's burning glare.

"Y'know, Buff, I think she's got a bit of that Slayer temper," he said in a stage whisper.

She swatted his arm. "Temper?" she said loudly, but her eyes danced with amusement. "Are you implying that I have a temper?" Hands on hips, she faced him with lips pursed into a frown.

"Um, no?" he said in a mock show of nervousness.

"Guys, so not helping!" Dawn shouted from the kitchen.

"Check the backyard! You were studying out there before dinner yesterday!" Buffy shouted in return, thinking to herself that *surely* she had never been so annoying while in high school.

"Studying? Before dinner? Not for five minutes before bed, while also talking on the phone? You *sure* she's of your blood?" Xander asked in an amazed tone while an impish smile played on his face.

"Xander," Buffy growled. "I haven't even had my mocha yet. No making of the fun. Too early."

A shrill scream interrupted Xander's most likely snarky comeback. "Buffy! Xander!"

The two friends exchanged glances and rushed towards Dawn's voice.

She stood on the back steps, pointing towards a strange creature that was built like a horse, but had wings and a bird's head.

"Whoa!" Xander exclaimed as he skidded to a stop. "That is one big, angry-looking bird." He glanced towards Buffy. "Do we kill it?"

"That is a hippogriff," Dawn calmly informed. "They don't hurt people unless they are provoked. But that isn't what I was pointing at. I think Willow came back."

Dawn and Xander gasped as the saw the still form of their red-haired friend lying with her head resting on top of a man's stomach. All three of them rushed forwards but the hippogriff kicked up its front legs at them.

"Whoa! You think this thing hurt Willow?" Buffy asked in an icy tone. Yes - she still felt weird when she thought about how she was supposed to deal with Willow, but no matter what she was going to protect her best friend.

"No, I don't think so. It looks more like its protecting them," Dawn opined. "I read about these in one of Giles' books on mythological creatures that he gave me. They're a proud breed and you have to earn their trust. Lemme try." Without waiting for Buffy to stop her, Dawn approached the hippogriff and bowed low while retaining eye contact.

The hippogriff cocked its head, as if it was considering her for a moment, and then slowly bowed in return. After some incessant urging, Xander and Buffy followed suit. With the weird political hippogriff business over, Buffy gently rolled Willow off the man and inspected her.

"How is she?" Xander asked.

"I think she might be sleeping. I can't find any wounds or anything."

At hearing Dawn's giggle, Buffy looked up at her. "Is there something amusing about our unconscious friend?"

Dawn bit her lip to cease her outburst. "No! Definitely not. But there *is* something amusing about seeing this long-haired hippie-looking dude wearing that Scooby t-shirt that Xander got you guys."

"Scooby? Huh?" Xander inspected the form-fitting shirt on the slim, older looking man. "Weird. That definitely looks like Willow's shirt. Guess she and this dude must be friends," he added with a shrug.

With a wide grin, Dawn nodded approvingly. "Nice job, Will," she said softly.

"Nice job, what?" Buffy asked with a raised brow.

Dawn laughed giddily. "Turns out she was paying attention during our LOTR marathons. She brought me home a dirty-hot Aragorn guy!"

~*~*~*~*

Sirius felt himself slowly start to awaken - it was like climbing through a pitch black tunnel until only, bit by bit, did a pinprick of light expand to fully showcase the world outside his unconscious thought. Dimly, he heard two female voices speaking.

"It's already after four in the afternoon, when do you think they're going to wake?"

"No idea. After a trip to Major Magics Willow can sleep harder than a zombie on Percoset - she may not wake up until tomorrow."

"I hope she wakes up soon. I want to find out who dirty-hot Aragorn guy is and if I can keep him."

"Ew! Dawn! He's like Giles-ish and probably has a pair of glasses in his pocket and tweed in his closet."

"No way! He's so not that old."

Sirius felt a tingly sensation in his scalp, as though someone had picked up a piece of his hair.

"See! No grays. Totally okay."

"No, George Clooney is the only hottie with an old body. I mean, I guess this guy's okay in that rugged, NYC street person way, but way too old for you."

A snort of laughter sounded, followed by a rather sarcastic voice. "Yeah, okay, Ms. My-Two-Boyfriends-Had-Bicentennials."

"Ow!"

"That's what you get. Besides, Spike never had a bicentennial, so he's not that old. Also, he was never a boyfriend. He was…"

"Okay, now it's my turn to say ew."

A pair of footsteps retreated and after a moment a second pair followed.

Sirius' eyes blinked open, revealing that he was in a dimly lit bedroom. He was so confused. Where was he? Who were those girls? They didn't sound British but their words also made no bloody sense either. He heard something about magic, a zombie, and a spike. Very odd.

Slowly, he sat up and surveyed the area. The first thing he noticed was that his arm felt healed - which was weird because the last thing he remembered was taking that 'Reducto' blast for Willow. Even Madam Pomfrey couldn't heal shattered bone that quickly.

Glancing to his right, he saw that Willow was in a deep sleep next to him on the King-sized bed. She appeared troubled and her lips were pressed into a thin frown. He wondered if she was having a nightmare. Gently, he rolled his thumb over her cheek; feeling an instinctive urge to protect her from whatever plagued her dreams.

Actually, speaking of nightmares - where was he? He would assume that the Aurors had captured the two of them, but he severely doubted that this was the new and improved Azkaban cell, or even a Ministry holding cell. Nor would they have fixed his arm if they planned on feeding him to the bloody dementors.

Sirius shivered at the thought of the foul, gaping mouthed creatures.

No, this place imbued a sense of warmth and coziness. He could only presume that Willow had gotten them out of that bit of trouble. How, he had no idea. But Sirius Black was not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. They were safe, and that was all that mattered.

Gingerly, he rolled to the side of the bed and stood up, suddenly realizing he needed to use the loo. At the same time, he wasn't quite sure if he was prepared to meet his saviors - or captors, or whoever's home he was in. Not to mention, he didn't think it was just his sleepiness that made their speech confusing. No, it would be better to put that off for a moment.

Softly opening the door, Sirius crept out into a brightly lit hallway. Well, there was his second clue they weren't in Britain anymore - this place was too damn sunny.

Noticing a door set ajar, Sirius realized it was the bathroom and snuck in. After taking care of business, he realized that - what with his smell and tangled hair - he could use a shower. With a swish of his wand he muttered, "Silencio", so no one would hear him showering. He figured they wouldn't mind, but until Willow woke up he was happy to have those strange girls think he was still sleeping.

Finding a towel in the linen closet, Sirius hung it up and turned on the water. Ah- hot water! How he had missed this. In fact, he was starting to feel spoiled at having two hot showers in three days. This was definitely some sort of record.

With a frown, Sirius realized this was most certainly a female bathroom since all the toiletries were fruity sounding, but he figured it wouldn't be that bad to have hair that smelled like 'Cucumber Melon'. After all, he could - like Willow mentioned in their first meeting - smell like dog, instead.

So engrossed with his current activity, Sirius Black did not realize that someone opened the bathroom door fully intending to take a shower of her own. Grabbing her towel, she set it on the rack and noticed a new towel was already sitting there.

'_That's weird_,' she thought. Glancing at the shower, she jumped back when she saw steam rising into the air. Yet oddly, although she could see the water turned on, she could not hear it.

"Hello?" she asked tentatively. With a bemused smile she wondered if maybe the Summers residence had a ghost, like the one that Cordy used to have in L.A. After all, no one else would be showering right now.

'_Only one way to find out_,' she thought as her hand gripped the edge of the shower curtain.

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A/N:

Likey? Dislikey? Tell-y me!

And do you think it will be Dawn or Buffy that spies Sirius in the buff? ;) haha

*Aceso- .; Goddess of Healing, Grand-daughter of Apollo


	26. Just Your Standard Supper Talk

**Chapter 26: Just Your Standard Supper Talk**

**A/N:**

A special thanks to a href="." Lottii/a , a href="." KooriHime/a , and a href="." btvsfrk/a for rec'ing this ! : )

Mad thanks to people who told me about HTML formatting :D

* * *

Dawn pulled back the shower curtain and let out a shrill scream when she saw the current occupant - who was so totally inot/i a ghost. "Ahhhhh!!"

The man - who was lathering his hair up with green shampoo - jumped at the sound of her voice and quickly turned to hide his - er - parts and smacked said parts against the wall. His scream of surprise transformed into a yelp of pain. "Merlin's balls!"

Her hand snaked up to cover her eyes. "What are you doing in the shower?" she yelled.

"What does it bloody look like I'm doing?" he yelled back, his voice a bit high-pitched.

"Well how am I supposed to know you're showering when there was no freaking sound?" she retorted, feeling very embarrassed to have walked in on him.

Although she had to say, she wasn't particularly sorry.

"Dawn! What are you screaming about?" called Buffy's concerned voice as she walked in.

"Oh my God!" she exclaimed in surprise. "What the hey-now?" she asked as her wide eyes quickly averted from the naked stranger in her shower to Dawn's reddened face.

"Merlin's beard, can't a man get some privacy around here?" he asked in a frustrated tone as he yanked the curtain to cover everything but his face.

"Sorry!" Buffy grabbed Dawn's arm and pulled her quickly out of the room.

"Dawn Summers! Okay, I know you're fascinated with tall, dark, and dirty-hot, but what makes you think you can pull a peeping-tom?" Buffy scolded as soon as she slammed the door shut.

Dawn's mouth gaped open. "I wasn't i trying/i to see him all wet and naked! I was gonna take a shower and it was all weird because I didn't hear anything but I saw that the shower was on, so I pulled back the curtain to see what was up and bam - dirty-hot Aragorn was in the middle of being clean-hot Aragorn!" she rambled defensively.

Buffy just sighed and rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay," she said in an exasperated tone. "Just, I don't know, wash your eyeballs out with soap or something. You're too young to see the nakedness of the opposite sex and all that."

Dawn arched a brow in response. "Wash out my eyeballs - really?" she asked dryly.

With a frustrated sigh, Buffy stalked downstairs, wishing there was a manual on how to raise a teenager.

~*~*~*~*~

Sirius' stomach rumbled as he changed into the clean clothes he found waiting for him, hanging on the doorknob. Unfortunately, they were even worse than the clothes that Willow had loaned him - a pair of snug bright pink and green pajama pants and a large green t-shirt that said "Sunnydale University". With a groan, he viewed his reflection in the mirror - he looked like a complete prat. Both of the women who had barged in earlier were extremely slim so it was i possible/i that these horrid clothes were the closest thing they had that would fit him… But Sirius had a sneaking suspicion that this was payback for scaring the teenager.

With a grimace, he departed the bathroom and went to check on Willow in the bedroom. Quietly he walked to the bed and peered at her, disappointed to see that she was still sleeping. He found it odd that she would still be asleep. Then again, it must have taken an impressive amount of energy to get them out of last night's mess - she was probably exhausted after sending them here.

Glancing around the room, Sirius pondered on where exactly 'here' was. A glint of silver caught his eye and he picked up a silver picture frame on the night table. It was of Willow with a blond woman and both of them were laughing about something. Curiosity got the best of him and Sirius began inspecting other picture frames that lined the dresser. Each photo featured Willow with one or more people - sometimes the previous blond and others with the two girls that had walked in on him, a brunette man, and a strawberry-blond haired woman.

Suddenly he realized that this was Willow's bedroom - which meant Sirius was in California. How in the bloody hell did she bring them here? Even if the anti-apparation wards hadn't been up, there was still no way Willow could have apparated them clear across the Atlantic! Apparition was really only possible for travel within Britain, at the most.

Sirius also heavily doubted that a port-key or floo would have been possible. Floo didn't cross oceans and he didn't think anyone outside of the Wizarding community used port-keys.

Hmm. Very strange.

"Oh, there you are!" said a soft voice from the doorway. "Hungry? Dinner's ready."

Sirius nodded at the young woman, suddenly realizing how hungry he was. How long had he been out, anyways?

He stepped out of the room, closed the door behind him, and began following the girl. Sirius took in everything - the photos on the wall depicting this woman with the teenager and an older version that he presumed to be their mother, the cozy living room that had an honest-to-goodness TV (certainly one invention that he envied the Muggles for), and a brightly lit dining room where the teenage girl sat along with the brunette man he had seen in Willow's photos

"This is Dawn, my sister," she said with a carefree gesture and a smirk. "But I guess you already met her." Dawn blushed a deep shade of scarlet and waved self-consciously.

"This is Xander." Sirius' back straightened as he realized the infamous Xander was waving at him. Bloke seemed nice enough, but an inane part of his brain confidently assured himself that Sirius could easily take him if needed.

"And I'm Buffy Summers," she said with a smile. "What's your name?"

"Sirius," he mumbled, a bit taken by surprise at her name. Merlin, and he thought i his/i family came up with some weird names.

Buffy's eyes narrowed and both Dawn and Xander quickly covered up snorts of laughter with sudden coughing fits.

"Yes, I'm i serious/i ," she huffed. "Geez, why do people always have to drink the Hater-ade at the sound of my name?"

Sirius' startled eyes got as round as saucer plates once he realized his host had thought he was insulting her. "Oh, no!" he blurted out and shot her an apologetic grin. "That's my name - Sirius. Sirius Black."

"Oh!" squealed Dawn. "You're British! And you said your name all James Bond-y - 'cept backwards. But still very cool," she grinned appreciatively.

Buffy started laughing and Xander joined in. "Oh, okay, good. Nice to meet someone with a name weirder than mine."

"Hey," he warned in a defensive voice, but his eyes glowed with mirth. "Nothing is weird about my name - I'm named after the Dog Star. Where does Buffy come from, anyway?"

"That is something many of us have pondered for years, Sirius." Xander shook his head sadly. "Unfortunately, that has yet to be discovered."

Dawn giggled and Sirius' face broke out into a grin. All right, maybe this Xander bloke wasn't half-bad.

Buffy smacked the back of Xander's head as she walked to her seat at the dining table. "Have a seat, Sirius. Tonight we're having the Summers special," Buffy declared with a welcoming smile.

After eying the main dish critically and sitting down, he turned to her with a smile, thinking of his first (and only) meal with Willow. "You guys make your own pizza?"

Xander snickered. "The only thing the women of this house can make is a phone call to the pizza delivery dude."

Ah - the Muggle way of contacting people through telephone. Sirius didn't know they had pizzas delivered. If his name ever got cleared he might have to set up a similar business in the magical world - except instead of calling people could floo for pizza delivery.

As they began eating, conversation flowed easily between the three of them and Sirius was content just with listening for the time being. It was still a shock to his system to be around other people - especially three at once. Regardless, their conversation was amusing to listen to - even if Sirius didn't quite always follow what they were saying. He wondered if this was how Americans spoke -- they seemed to enjoy putting a 'y' at the end of words and definitely avoided proper sentence structure.

"So Dawnie, how was the Bio test today?" Buffy inquired.

"Ugh," she moaned. "It was the worst of the year. Thirty-five questions in fifty minutes -which is totally not of the possible. I seriously think Ms. Malcolm is evil," she added with a vigorous nod.

"Now, are you thinking Praying Mantis Lady evil or maybe just your old-fashioned Snyder evil?" Xander asked.

Dawn's lips curled into a sly grin. "Not sure. Was thinkin' we could have you ask her out on a date. If she accepts, then definite demon material. If not, then typical mean teacher deal."

"Ooh, I like the idea of that, Xand!" Buffy chimed in cheerfully. "We could follow you with hidden cameras like on those dating reality tv shows and stuff."

"Har-de-har-har," he responded dryly. "Please, you just want to watch my reality tv show - I think I'll call it Xander's House of Lo-i ove/i - just to get out of a night of slaying."

Buffy's eyes darted nervously towards Sirius and he felt something move under the table.

"Ow," Xander muttered with wince. "I meant, you just want a night off off laying-"

Buffy's frowned deepened.

"-i around/i all night watching SNL. I mean, c'mon, the hey-day of SNL has definitely passed," he quickly added.

"Ooh, 'cept the shorts. The i Mother-Lover/i and i Dick In a Box/i ones were hilarious," Dawn enthusiastically stated.

Something tickled at the back of his brain - what was it Willow had said about her friends? Then his brain registered Dawn's comment.

"Dawn!" Buffy scolded with an embarrassed look aimed at Sirius.

"Dick in a Box?" Sirius asked in a bewildered tone. "That sounds, ah, rather painful." It actually sounded like a form of torture a Death Eater would enjoy, not a seemingly nice teenage girl.

Covering her mouth, Dawn cracked up laughing. "Oh, actually it's these two guys singing about cutting a hole in a box and putting their, um, ya know, in a box and giving their girlfriend a present."

Xander hooted with laughter and Sirius joined him - while Buffy just rolled her eyes at her sister's inability to act normal in front of company.

"Sounds like a good, inexpensive present," Sirius joked, leaning back in his chair.

His laughter subsiding, Xander nodded. "Oh yeah. That was the nice thing about Anya - it was easy to get presents for her."

"Oh, Xan-i der/i !" squealed both Summers sisters in disgust.

"Tryin' to eat here, ya know," glared Dawn.

Sirius gave him an incredulous look. "You telling me you actually did that?"

Xander looked smiled sheepishly at his accidental comment. "Yeah," he admitted.

"And it bloody worked?" Sirius let out a bark of laughter. "Sounds like something I would have done back in school." He grinned at the thought - he could definitely see James daring him to do that to one of his many ladies.

His smile more confident now, Xander nodded. "The ladies always say it's the thought that counts."

"Not okay, Xander. With Anya not around you'd think we'd be lucky that tales of your sexual excursions would never be heard of again," Buffy teased.

Instantly Xander's face darkened and Sirius felt uncomfortable intruding on a sudden private moment. His focused his attention on his last slice of pizza as Buffy tried to explain herself.

"Oh, God. I'm sorry, Xand. I didn't mean to bring that up," she apologized in a sober voice.

"Nah, no worries Buffster. Its old news," Xander commented lightly - but his voice still bore evidence of a darker thought.

"Have you talked to her since Worm Boy?" Dawn asked hesitantly.

"No, haven't really seen her. Guess being a Vengeance Demon takes up a lot of time," he answered indifferently.

"Yeah," agreed Buffy slowly, not really sure how to further proceed.

"So Sirius," redirected Xander in a cheerful tone. "What brings you to Sunnydale?"

Sirius looked up, uncomfortable to be in the hot seat. "That's a good question. Ah, I don't really know," he admitted. "Where exactly i is/i Sunnydale, anyways?"

"Ah, welcome to Sunnydale, California," Xander grandly stated. "Home of the Sunnydale High Razorbacks, vampires, demons, and a Hellmouth."

"Oh," was all Sirius could say at the bizarre statement. Vampires? Demons? And what in the bloody hell was a Hellmouth? This place sounded worse than Azkaban!

Suddenly Sirius remembered Willow mentioning what she and her friends did for 'fun' around here -hunting vampires and an array of other baddies. Looking around at the three of them he wondered just how these people could take down something so powerful on a regular basis. Especially Buffy - the girl was a tiny thing!

Buffy gave him a quizzical look and held up a hand. "Wait, don't tell me Willow found you in Britain and just took you in like a stray dog?"

"Not quite," Sirius said while holding back laughter - the girl didn't realize how close to the truth she was!

"Willow and I were attacked by wizards at Hogwarts. Last thing I know, I got hit by a curse that shattered my arm and knocked me out. Then I woke up here."

The three of them shared a look and Sirius was bombarded with questions.

"Wizards?"

"Hog-what?"

"Why?"

Sirius held up his hands for silence - his nerves already feeling a little bit frayed. "Hogwarts is a school for witches and wizards. Unfortunately the Ministry of Magic there wanted to apprehend us because I was framed for murder and because they still think Willow is a dark witch."

"What?" Buffy exclaimed. "Wait, is Willow okay?"

"I'm fine," floated a soft voice from the doorway. "Just a bit sleepy." The redhead fiddled with the sleeves of her green robe as she shot them a small smile.

Buffy's jaw dropped and she, along with Dawn and Xander jumped away from the table to embrace Willow.

"Oh Will! Are you okay? I can't believe you got attacked by freaking wizards!" Buffy said in a rushed voice.

"Yeah, Willster," Xander added as he pulled her into a tight embrace - tighter than Sirius would have preferred, anyways. "We had no idea you were coming. What happened? Who attacked you?"

"Does Buffy need to kill someone?" Dawn asked as she pulled Willow into another hug.

Willow looked flustered at the amount of attention she was receiving. "Um, it's kind of a crazy story."

"Isn't that the story of life?" Xander replied with a smile. "I'm serious, when does something normal ever happen to any of us?"

Sirius was never very good at ignoring perfect opportunities to pun his name. "Actually, i I'm/i Sirius," he joked with an easy smile.

Dawn and Buffy giggled while Xander gave him a considering look. "Touché, my friend. Touché ."

Willow shot him a dazzlingly bright smile. "Sirius!" He stood up as she walked towards him and she threw herself into his arms. "Goddess, you got me so worried when they hit you with that spell! And then you were all unresponsive and I wasn't sure if I could heal you at first, 'cause I'm actually not that good with bone mending, so I hoped that it was going to work ok and it looks like it did!" she ended her babble in a relieved voice.

A genuine smile of happiness formed on his face and he allowed himself to enjoy the moment before she pulled back to begin inspecting his arm.

With a frown she sent a volley of questions his way. "How is it? All healed? Anything feel funny like maybe I accidentally made some bones grow backwards or something? 'Cause there is this eensy-teensy possibility that something like that could happen."

She really just kind of cute when she talked liked this. It made him want to cut off her babbling moments by kissing her -- but considering that last time he kissed she knocked his arse to the ground, that was probably a bad idea.

With a chuckle, he grabbed the hand that was on his arm. "It's fine, really. You did a smashing job, Willow." He massaged her hand and looked deeply into her emerald orbs. "Thank you."

She returned his gaze and smiled slightly, but her eyes appeared troubled. "Of course," she responded softly.

"So Willow, what exactly happened with these wizard dudes?" Buffy's voice cut through the air, effectively causing Willow to nervously yank her hand out his and turn towards her friends. Sirius noted that the three of them were carefully inspecting both him and Willow.

Willow shrugged nonchalantly, but she wrung her hands anxiously. "Um, pizza first, before the talk-y time? I'm starving."

Xander snorted. "No surprise there. I'd be starving too after a summer of English food, what with their blood sausage and mashy-bang-thingies."

Sirius' glare quickly softened when he realized the boy had a point.

* * *

**A/N:**

Will Willow spill everything that happened? Will the Ministry catch up to her and Sirius? Will Buffy go to England and show Voldemort the meaning of love, thus producing cute, forked-tongued babies?

…S'kay, that last one ain't likely to happen… ;)

Please leave a review, Dearest Readers!


	27. Family

**Chapter 27: Family**

**A/N:**

DEAREST FANS~ You may have noticed that my primary posting site is Twisting the Hellmouth (.org) as Luna. So sometimes when I post I use their html codes and don't change them for here or I'm always thanking people who rec my fic from there. See, ffnet has not been kind to me in the past - barely anyone ever reads or reviews so I kinda just post on here to get additional feedback but I never expect anything.

But hot damn! This story is getting a TON of splendiferous readers and reviewers!!! So I really wanted to thank you personally for taking the time to read this and offer critical feedback.

First, to sweetypie15 and Roxie-Angel, my first and most frequent reviewers- I feed off your enthusiasm and kind words. THANK YOU *SO* MUCH! You are appreciated more than you know. mightmon, OSAT, Aria DeLoncray, dreameralways, & saving juliet -- THANK YOU for your reviews! Love you guys. To the people who favorited this, love you too (of course, I'll love you more if you review too! *wink*wink* ;)

* * *

Willow nibbled on a slice of pizza; she was certainly in no rush to tell her friends what had happened in England. She sighed involuntarily, happy that no one else was in the kitchen with her. Sirius had gone outside to properly introduce Buckbeak to the gang and make sure he had some food. Luckily, Sunnydale had a variety of butcher shops at its disposal so Buckbeak would be set once Buffy set things up.

Coming home so unexpectedly had really thrown Willow for a loop. For weeks she had been dreading the return to Sunnydale but instead of her friends giving her the cold shoulder, they showered her with warmth. It was…Strange. Off-putting.

But so nice. More than nice, really. It almost felt like things would work out. That her friends still loved her.

'_But will they still love me if they knew what I had done the last night?_'

Clenching her eyes shut tightly, she cringed at the thought. Flashbacks of last night assailed her senses and she shivered in disgust at her weakness. It honestly scared her that she had allowed her dam of dark magic to break and consume her. Willow remembered how she had taken pleasure in hurting those wizards and satisfaction in seeing them moan in pain. She could still see the blood of the last wizard she attacked glisten in the moonlight, his body raw and ripped.

Tears silently slipped down her delicate face as she wept for the pain she had caused and the trust she had broken. Would Buffy, Xander, and Dawn still treat her the same after she told them what happened? For that matter, how would Sirius treat her? He had been so cruel when he thought she had been evil - how would he act knowing a part of her still used dark magic?

Of course… Did she have to tell them?

"Oh my God, Willow, I cannot believe you got to ride on Buckbeak. I'm so jealous," Dawn's excited voice interrupted her thoughts. Willow subtly wiped away her tears and looked at the exuberant teen in the doorway, forcing a smile in her direction.

"Trust me, not as much fun as you would think," she said dryly.

"What? No way! It's a flying hippogriff! I mean, how cool is that?" she responded disbelievingly.

Sirius snorted as he followed Dawn in, along with Buffy and Xander. "Willow is not really a fan of my feathered friend."

Willow glared at him. "Gee, do ya suppose that might be due to the fact that your 'feathered friend'," she said with curling fingers forming air quotes, "has attacked me not just once, but twice?"

"He attacks people?" Buffy swiftly asked.

"No," Sirius responded indignantly with a frown. "Well, only if you aren't respectful or he's afraid of you. The first time Willow stumbled into our secret hiding place and poor Buckbeak was just trying to scare her away. The second time he thought she was evil, so it was not his fault."

Willow rolled her eyes. She just wished that Ms. Kitty Fantastico was bigger so she could eat the bird-hybrid creature as a snack.

"You had a secret hiding spot? We talking Batman-type bat cave or James Bond super villain volcano lair?" interjected Xander thoughtfully.

"Oh, wait! Before the stories begin, we should sit out in the living room. I'll grab some chocolate-chip cookies for some munchy delight," Dawn said with a bright smile as she went towards the kitchen.

Buffy frowned. "But Dawn, we don't have any cookies."

"No, we do have cookies but I just hid them from you."

Buffy, the self-confessed chocoholic, thrust her hands on her hips and glared in Dawn's direction. "Hey! You can't hide all the cookies from the woman of the house!"

Dawn walked out with a knowing smile and a box of bakery fresh cookies. "Um, have you ever watched how much you eat after," she paused after glancing at Sirius, "working out? And you _always _go for the chocolate."

"Wouldn't eating chocolate not be helpful when you are working out?" asked Sirius with a bewildered expression.

"She's got a high metabolism," Xander stated quickly as they began to get settled in the living room. "I mean, you should see how much this girl can eat at four in the morning."

Buffy jokingly smacked his arm in retort.

Sirius' eyes widened slightly at the two and his lips quirked upwards in a surprised and then sly smile. "Oh, okay," he commented casually.

"So," began Buffy, oblivious to Sirius' misunderstanding. "What's the scoop with all this stuff about secret hiding spots and wizards attacking and some place named after a pig?"

Curling her legs under her, Willow took a deep breath and began explaining everything, with helpful interjections from Sirius. Between the two of them they unraveled the tale - from their first meeting, to their argument, the meeting with Giles and Amelia where she learned about Sirius, Sirius receiving information from his friend Remus that she was a dark witch, the trip to Hogwarts, their misunderstanding getting settled in the forest by Sirius' godson and friends (and no, neither of them mentioned the kiss, although Willow did admittedly stutter around that part), their attempted escape, and then the attack by the Aurors.

"Wait, so these Auror guys were using real magic wands? Like all King Author and Merlin?" Xander asked with an intrigued grin - hunting monsters as a Scooby sucked sometimes, but the cool supernatural discoveries about the world made his geeky side jump with joy.

"Yes, actually. Some wizards can do spells without one, but it's much more difficult. A wand allows us to focus our magic properly." Sirius pulled his wand out of a magically created pocket he had created in his ugly bright green and pink pajama pants. "See?"

"Sweet!" Dawn gasped.

"Hey!" squealed Buffy. "Did you just cut a hole in my pants to put your wand in?"

Sirius smirked. "Don't worry, I wouldn't dream of cutting such a piece of fine clothing. And no, I just created a pocket. I can take it back anytime."

Willow found herself smiling, even though her body was full of tension from the conversation. "Yeah, I didn't get a chance to mention it, what with the greeting and eating and storytelling - but why on the Goddess' green earth are you wearing that?"

Xander began chuckling, Dawn giggled, and Buffy just smiled innocently.

Sirius frowned slightly and darted a glance at Buffy. "I took a shower and Buffy was kind enough to leave some clean clothes for me. I imagine you don't have many spare clothes around here and this was the best you could find?" he asked dryly as he nonchalantly pushed a lock of drying black hair behind his ear.

"Buffy!" Willow scolded. "Why did you give Sirius your girly pants? That's not nice!" Although Willow _did_ find herself admiring earlier that those tighter pants did display that he had a nice butt - not that she was _trying_ to check him out or anything, 'cause, ya know, she liked female butts and all and a female Sirius certainly was not.

Holding her hands up in surrender, Buffy gave her a guilty grin. "Okay, okay, that wasn't very nice of me, I can admit. But it was funny. And I thought he deserved a bit of payback for sneakily showering and letting Dawnie walk in on him naked."

"What?" Willow exclaimed as she looked at Dawn and Sirius.

"Now, I didn't bloody well _let_ anyone see me starkers. I just did a spell to make my shower silent and it's not my fault that your sister just blindly pulls opens up shower curtains without some equivalent of knocking," Sirius retorted defensively.

"Hey, it's not like I'm used to having strange wizards shower in my bathroom!" Dawn said with a mortified look while she crossed her arms.

Willow just stared at Dawn, unable to believe that her sixteen-year old almost-sister had just walked in on Sirius naked in the shower. As a mental picture formed in her mind, her stomach tightened and Willow shifted uncomfortably in her chair; unable to keep from wondering how much Dawnie had actually seen.

"No worries, Sirius," Buffy laughed. "I'll get you something better soon." Her expression sobering, she gestured for Willow to finish the story. "So what happened after the wizard dudes blasted you out of the sky?"

"Well, after this girl with pink hair paralyzed me, I was able to break free and help Sirius out against their leader person - Kingsley, I think they called him. I started to fight back a little more with Sirius and then out of nowhere one of them shot some red light my way and," she paused and gave Sirius a kind smile, "Sirius pushed me out of the way."

Buffy, Dawn, and Xander all gave appraised Sirius. "You mean, you took a bullet for her?" Buffy asked in surprise.

Sirius frowned. "A… Bullet? Oh, that's one of those Muggle killing things?"

Willow's hands clenched at how Sirius described the word bullet. '_Yes, they are definitely killing things,_' she thought darkly.

Buffy, already having heard the scoop on the Wizarding world and Muggles, nodded.

With an uncomfortable shrug, Sirius nodded. "Ah, yeah, guess I did," he answered, looking a bit embarrassed at the attention placed on him.

"Well, that definitely earns you points here," Buffy informed him with a gratified smile that she shared with Xander and Dawn.

"What I'm curious to figure out is how did we get all the way here to California?" Sirius asked quickly to change to subject/

Willow began toying with the sleeve of her robe again, unease swelling within her like a flooding river. "After Sirius got knocked out, I created a portal back home," she said carefully. After all, that was the truth.

"A portal?" Sirius cried out in amazement. "Bollocks, you are powerful. I've barely heard of wizards having the power to just create one without intense preparation."

"Wow, Will. That's amazing," Buffy said, but Willow noticed the caution that lurked in her eyes. "That must have taken a lot of power. I guess your time with the coven helped?" she asked hesitantly.

The unease was now coupled with guilt, rising together against the dam she had created to hold those emotions back - but they threatened to overwhelm her. "My time with the coven was really helpful," she agreed with a shrug. The true story danced along the tip of her tongue but fear reined it in. She didn't want to lose them, any of them.

"Bet those wizard dudes were surprised when you jumped ship," Dawn chortled. "What do you think happened to them?"

'_They all ended up needing a hospital, mostly,' _came the unbidden thought.

"They probably got an earful from the Minister for letting the two most dangerous people leave England." Sirius rolled his eyes and smiled at Willow. "I know I'm guilty for believing it at one point, but the Ministry really full of sodding idiots if they think Willow is a dark witch," he commented lightly.

Willow's breath caught in her throat. She knew this was wrong - to let them all believe a lie. After all, Amelia and Giles had taught her that she needed to be open and honest about her shortcomings. In fact, she admitted guiltily, she believed the word they had used was honesty was 'critical' to her recovery.

And Sirius' statement made her feel even worse.

"They'd be right," she admitted quietly, fiddling with her hands.

"Will, yeah, some things happened. Bad things. But you're not a dark witch. Not anymore," Xander assured her.

Choking back a sob, she shook her head at Xander's statement - his support just now touched her greatly, but made her feel worse at the same time. She took a deep breath, willing herself not to loose it right now.

"I- I had a relapse," she said with difficulty. Her mouth felt dry and she nervously bit her lip.

Buffy's gaze sharpened. "What do you mean?"

She squeezed her eyes shut, feeling their eyes on her, relentlessly assessing her for a sign of black hair and veins. She began speaking in a monotonous voice, mentally detaching herself from the situation so she could get it all out without breaking down. "When Sirius got hurt… I kind of lost it. I was just _so_ full of anger - I mean; you heard what they plan on doing to him. And- and I let it take control of me. A part of me _wanted_ to hurt those brainless jerks for using demons to suck out souls and trying to lay the magical smack down on us before even talking to us first."

Willow opened her eyes and observed their reactions. Dawn sat on the couch next to Xander and Buffy, looking wide-eyed and nervous. Xander's expression made her feel ashamed - he looked so disappointed with her. Buffy's expression was guarded, but her eyes had that same calculating look that always appeared when they were discussing a Big Bad.

Sirius, meanwhile, looked absolutely shocked by her words - as if he didn't really believe it.

"What happened?" Buffy asked simply, her voice not betraying any emotion.

"I used a protection field to rebound most of their curses back at them, so whatever they sent my way they got back. Others I stopped with vines or pretty harmless spells. But one man hurt me - all of a sudden I was flying through the air. And then I saw him - it was the same wizard that hurt you," she told Sirius. "And I didn't even think. I just reacted and somehow magically clawed him - like a tiger - and then he just began bleeding and he was in such pain-"

A sob escaped her lips before she continued. "All of a sudden I could feel him. Amelia taught me that everything is connected. Somehow I felt his pain, and I pulled back. That's when I created the portal and when we landed here I healed Sirius and passed out."

Silence greeted the end of her story. Her gut twisted with hot acidic apprehension as she awaited their reactions.

"Did the man die?" Buffy inquired, her voice barely above a whisper.

Willow shook her head. "No. He was going to be fine. But the pain - it was burning hot like churning lava." She drew in a shaky breath, the shadows of that memory assailing her.

The dam that was holding back her emotions broke as tears began to cascade down her cheeks. "I am so sorry. Please, I- I know I have a lot of work to do and I had been trying so hard last night not to lose myself. I don't know how it happened, and its so frustrating because I've been working _so_ hard at overcoming it," she choked out between sobs.

"I feel awful about what happened, but I just don't want you all to hate me," she further deplored, eyes shining with tears.

"Willow, we don't-" Buffy tried to argue but Willow interrupted her.

"I see it, you know," she said quietly, struggling to calm down. "Your faces. You're afraid of me, disappointed in me - and you should be. I just - I cannot lose you guys." Willow stood up, her anxious energy preventing her from just sitting as her friends judged her.

"Willow," Buffy gasped. "We aren't- we're not," she shook her head. "We love you."

Xander stood up and pulled her into a tight hug, his words muffled against her hair. "Willow, we're not afraid of you. You've come far and you're going to reach your destination someday. Last night was a relapse, sure, but you came back from it."

"And you were only trying to fight your way out of a crazy magical fight. Plus, it's not like you were the reincarnation of raven-haired Willow, big on the death and chaos. Yeah, you did hurt that one guy, but he's okay - and more importantly, you were able to pull back," Buffy added as she embraced Willow from behind; Dawn also joining in the hug.

So much warmth, so much comfort - Willow felt safe. Safe enough to spill her darkest secret, the one that haunted her dreams and plagued her thoughts.

"I'm afraid I'm not strong enough to fight it," she whispered.

Xander grabbed her chin and made her look at him. "Hey, where's our infamous Willow 'Resolve Face'? I know you're strong enough."

"_We _know," Dawn corrected.

"You really…?" Willow trailed off.

They settled themselves onto the couch, Xander wrapping an arm protectively around her, Willow's head on his shoulder and Dawn's head on his opposite shoulder, with Buffy squeezing Willow's arm like she would a stuffed animal and leaning on her shoulder.

"Will, I won't lie and say that I'm not worried about you. Because I am. I'm worried about you having to go through all this; worried about the strain it puts on you. But I'm not worried about your success. You've come far - I know you'll do it," Buffy stated confidently.

"Yeah. We've been through a lot together. Saved the world a whole bunch, gone through heaven and hell-"

"-Literally," Buffy added dryly, but with a joking smile.

"-and we'll make it through this together. We're family," Xander finished.

Willow smiled, the guilt lifting off her shoulders. She knew a lot of work lay in front of her, but she was suddenly feeling more optimistic now that she knew she wasn't alone. Her friends didn't want to abandon her - they loved her. For a long time they just cuddled in silence until Willow realized Sirius wasn't there anymore.

"I didn't realize that Sirius had left," she commented.

Dawn snorted. "He probably wasn't into that 'Full House' moment we just had."

The others laughed, but Willow didn't join in. She couldn't help but worry that maybe Sirius had left for another reason…

Maybe he had decided that she _was_ a dark witch to be avoided after all.

* * *

A/N:

Caught some 'Full House' episodes the other day on cable and watched to reminisce on the cheesiness. So I had to throw in that line, which also made me think of a funny plot bunny that I put up as a TtH challenge (Challenge 5356: Hugs & Tears- Faith is Thrown Into A 'Full House' life)-- I hope you guys didn't think it was cheesy. Honestly, its how I think things would have gone (even if in the back of their minds they were worried) if they saw Willow so upset when in reality, while she did have a relapse, it wasn't that bad. Plus, all 4 of them are pretty much insane in one way or another so no casting of the stones and all ;)

Keep the reviews a-coming! : ) Thank you for reading!


	28. Comfort

**Chapter 28:**

After a while longer of basking in their 'Full House' moment, Willow decided to go upstairs and shower. She was still more than exhausted from all the magic she had used in the last twenty-four hours and was ready to fall asleep as soon as her shower was finished. As it was, she could barely stay awake while she was bathing. Stumbling out of the bathtub, she wrapped a cotton towel around herself, slid on her fuzzy bunny slippers, and began the short walk to her bedroom.

Opening the door, she ready to drop the towel and get dressed when she saw Sirius stretched out on her bed, ankles crossed, and reading one of her magical texts.

"Sirius!" she squeaked in a surprised voice. "What are you doing here?"

He took a while to look up, seemingly enraptured in the book. When he did, his eyes widened considerably for a moment as he took in her dripping form. He gave her a soft look and a seductive smile; Willow couldn't help but think about how he had kissed her last night - the memory made her shiver in spite of herself.

"Apparently being in the right place at the right time," he responded with a wink and she noticed after the initial surprise he had kept his eyes on her face - more or less.

Willow's face flushed and she felt incredibly silly at standing here in her towel at the moment. "Um, well." Tugging nervously on her towel, making sure it was tight and covering everything. "Gotta get dressed now. So, go now?"

She also realized suddenly that he had flirted with her - which meant he probably wasn't all freaked out about her dark side…Then again; the man _had _kissed her while he still thought she was a dark witch. Maybe that was his type.

Hmm. Guess then he'd be like a male version of Buffy in the romance department.

Sirius stood up and gave her a low bow accompanied by a lopsided grin. "You wish is my command, fair lady." Picking up the book, he strolled out of her bedroom without another word. Quickly, Willow dried off and got dressed in loose blue pajama pants with tiny yellow chicks and a blue tank top.

After taking a moment to check her reflection in the mirror and combing her wet hair, Willow opened the door. "Coast is clear, Sirius, if you want to come back in," she called.

He looked up from where he was posted, leaning against the hallway wall. "Nice pants," he had commented with a wry smile.

"Oh." Willow looked down quickly and wished that this hadn't been the best of her bedtime wardrobe. Of course, she did own sexy, slinky nightgowns but in no way was she ready for Sirius to see her in one of those yet - not that she would ever be ready, actually.

Then she gave him an innocent smile "Yes, judging by yours I can really tell you've got a spot saved for you on the Fashion Police."

Sirius laughed and shook his head. "Forgot about that." He waved his wand and said an incantation. Suddenly in the place of his green and pink fashion disaster were black slacks, a button-up black shirt, and a long crimson velvet jacket. "Better?" he asked with a smile.

She gave him a long look. "Well, I still think the Fashion Police might pull you over," his face fell a little and she shrugged shyly. "But I kind of like it." Sirius gifted her with a genuine smile as he settled at the foot of his bed.

And she had meant the compliment. His clothes were definitely… _different_ but they seemed to suit him

"So how did you do that, anyways?" she asked as she sat down next to him.

He shrugged. "Simple transfiguration spell to change the clothes." He shot her an amused grin. "Don't worry, I can fix it when Buffy takes them back."

Willow laughed - she doubted Buffy would have enjoyed the new outfit. Especially the velvet. That was a big no-no for her. Something about an evil princess costume she was forced to wear as a kid that made her itch.

Of course, the evil princess costume was of the cheap department store type and not the Hellmouth variety.

"So I noticed you had a lot of magical books. Hope you don't mind that I started reading one." He flashed her the cover and she noticed it was one of the spell books on protection charms that Tara had gotten her. A part of her was weirded out by Sirius reading something that had been a gift from Tara, but she shook it off.

"Nah, that's no problem. Find anything interesting?"

"Not yet. I was curious if they had anything like a Fidelis Charm, or something more powerful actually."

Her face scrunched in confused. "A Fi-del-is charm?" she sounded out. "What's that?"

A dark look passed over his face and his eyes took on that same haunted expression they got when they had discussed the dementors. "It's a very powerful protection spell, but it is complicated as well. It allows a family, er, anyone really, to hide their home from anyone who searches for them - very helpful when hiding from evil. The only thing is, they must make that one person a Secret-Keeper. That one person has the knowledge of where they are."

"Wait, so this one person is forbidden from telling the secret?"

He let out a heavy sigh and his shoulders slumped noticeably. "No, that would make too much sense, now wouldn't it? The secret is hidden within the Secret-Keeper and it cannot be taken - but the Secret-Keeper can choose to give the secret away?"

Willow felt baffled. "Why would they give it away if the spell is supposed to hide them?" she asked, not quite understanding.

Giving her a sad look, she noticed for once how much older Sirius looked. She wasn't sure of his age and when he was joking or laughing she barely noticed it, but she could tell the difference now. His forehead was marred with just a few thin wrinkles that seemed the result of intense worry and his eyes had a fathomless look, like he had traveled to hell and back.

"An excellent question, dear Willow. Perhaps the Secret-Keeper could think it necessary to tell the secret, but sometimes they do it in an act of betrayal."

Comprehension dawned on her. "Oh. Oh my Goddess, do you mean that's what you were framed for?" Even when they had told their story to the rest of the gang, Sirius had never elaborated on just what charges he had been framed for; all she knew was some man named Peter had betrayed Sirius and his friends.

Turning his face away from her he gazed out the window, where the darkness of twilight was beginning to filter through the blue and pink streaked sky. "Yes. My best mate in the whole world, James, and my other best friend - his wife Lily - needed to go into hiding because Lord Voldemort was after their son, Harry, who was just a baby at the time."

"Harry?" she inquired with raised brows. "Your godson?"

"Yes," he nodded. "Anyways, James and Lily had asked me to be their Secret-Keeper. But at the last minute I changed my mind." Sirius turned to her now with an almost fervent look in his bright eyes. "See, I thought it would be obvious to everyone else that I would have been picked, plus we knew that someone in the Order was a spy. So we arranged for Peter to have been made the Secret-Keeper. We thought it would have been safer."

As he let out a sigh, Willow could practically feel the pain and despair emanating from the man. Without a word, she slid her hand into his to offer him support, which earned her a weak smile.

"As it turned out, I was wrong. Peter had been the spy all along," he said with gritted teeth. "Which if you knew him, it was surprising. After all, his bloody older sister was an official Death Eater and Peter spoke so shamefully about her that you'd never think he would have joined her. Not to mention, he was incredibly loyal to James," he muttered while shaking his head.

"What happened?" Willow whispered, daring to ask but not sure if she wanted to know.

"Peter told his true master, _Lord Voldemort_," he sneered, "the location of their house. Voldemort stormed in and mur-murdered James and Lily."

"But Harry-" she questioned, confused on how a baby could survive a dark lord.

"-somehow lived. No one knows why - although I know Dumbledore has his theories - but it seemed the killing curse rebounded and destroyed Voldemort - for a while anyway."

"Wait," she ordered as she held up the hand that wasn't clutching Sirius'. "A baby destroyed this Voldymort fellow? And what do you mean for a while, is he back?"

With a thin smile, Sirius shrugged. "I'm not sure how he did it, but he did. However, we have reason to believe that Voldemort is still out there somewhere, gathering his strength."

"Well, why don't you wizard people find him now while he's weak and just being lurk-y and kill him before he gets all kill-y?" Willow asked, annoyed that a crazy, one-time powerful guy was out there biding his time.

Sirius gave her a startled look, seeming surprised by her question. "Well, no one knows where he is, Willow. Dark magics hide him - not to mention we would never even know where to start."

She snorted lightly. "He's probably in his parent's basement. It's where the evil baddies like to go when they're kind of lame and not so powerful," she stated, thinking of the Trio.

"Speaking of dark magic…" Sirius trailed off while giving her a penetrating look.

She gulped, feeling suddenly self-conscious again and wondering what he was thinking. "Yes?" she queried timidly.

"While you were all down there spending time together, I have to confess, I've been trying to wrap my head around this Dark One concept."

"What is there to know?" she shrugged, really not wanting to go further with the conversation - partly in fear of him rejecting her.

"The way you spoke, how you had a 'relapse' and 'lost control' of your magic - it was almost like you were talking like you had some sort of addiction. I can't say I really understand."

Pulling legs up to sit cross-legged on the bed, she slid her hand from his tried to draw comfort from lightly rubbing her legs. "Well, um, you're not wrong. Last year I," she winced," developed an addiction to magic."

"You were addicted… to magic?" came the puzzled reply.

She nodded. "I let it consume me. Soon I was doing everything with magic, using my powers frivolously like dressing myself magically and searching the net without even typing."

"Wait a moment, you consider using magic like that to be bad?" Sirius frowned. "It's how we live in the Wizarding world. Blimey, the only reason I couldn't wash my clothes or cook at your home was because I had never done it without magic before."

Willow gave him a pointed look. "Yes, but your magic is different. Amelia explained to me that people in your world each have their own magic - that inner core - and the wand merely directs it, right?" Sirius nodded. "My magic isn't like that. Yes, I do have some of my own, but it really is tied into nature. What I take I draw from my surroundings. Amelia said I have an innate ability to draw more and have a deeper well of power than the average witch of my kind, but it's much different from yours. We do not use magic frivolously because our gifts from the Goddess are not to be taken lightly."

Sirius searched her eyes for a moment and nodded. "I think I understand. So you developed an addiction because you used magic too much?"

"That and then my _friend_," she said with a frown, "Amy took me to see a guy. He was a magic-dealer and, Goddess." She paused and chewed her lip, feeling dirty at the very memory. "He used to give me so much power that I literally floated for hours. The experiences were the definition of ecstasy."

An involuntary shudder rolled through her, as if her body was trying to thrust those memories out of her. "I got hooked. And then I-" She stopped, not wanting to discuss Tara right now. "Something bad happened and I lost it. I killed the man responsible and because I was so connected to the earth, I could feel every breaking heart, hear every sob, and taste every tear in the world. That's when I thought it would be a good idea to destroy the world in order to end everyone's suffering."

Willow shrugged and made a flippant remark. "Guess it sounds pretty stupid now. Trying to destroy the world just because people were sad."

That haunted look entered Sirius' eyes again as he shook his head. "No, it's not stupid. Sometimes the pain gets to be so much that a person wishes the world did end." He took her hand again and she let him, taking comfort in his touch.

"May I ask what happened to make you so upset?" he asked softly, his voice barely reaching her ear.

Willow's gaze immediately found the picture frames on her dresser, specifically the one with Tara in it. "Someone I loved very much was murdered. By a man. With a gun. Here, actually. He had tried to kill Buffy - bastard actually did almost kill her - but he also shot the person I loved the most in this world. Here, in this room actually."

"_Your shirt-" _

Her eyes found the spot on the floor where Tara's body had fallen and blood had pooled, but the image was fuzzy due to the tears building up in her eyes. Willow barely noticed that trembles ran through her - all she could do was stare at that spot.

"_Your shirt-" _

Her heart beat furiously in her chest, pumping blood quick enough to make her feel light-headed. It was like it was that day all over again, and all Willow could do was stand by helplessly and watch.

"_Your shirt-" _

Tara's final expression, so innocent. Her final words, so unselfish. As always.

"_Your shirt-" _

She could see the blood spreading over Tara's blouse - a blouse that Willow had given her as a make-up gift. So much blood.

"_Your shirt-" _

Eyes frozen on the spot, a sob leaked out of her throat as she experienced a brush of that grief springing up within her at seeing the woman she loved die in front of her.

"_Your shirt-" _

Willow never even got a chance to say good-bye. She and Tara had just found each other again, only to be ripped apart by Warren Mears.

"_Your shirt-" _

Warren Mears. Willow felt a growl building up in her throat at the thought of the spineless, evil coward who was human in flesh only, and demon in deed.

"_Your shirt-" _

Anger rippled through her as she thought of how he had casually stolen Tara from her.

"Willow?" came a soft voice at her ear.

"_Your shirt-" _

Green eyes focused on that spot on the floor. The spot that seemed to mock her with its ordinariness. The spot that seemed so common, yet in reality was the final place where Tara MaClay had breathed her last breath.

"_Your shirt-" _

"Willow, come back to me," coaxed a soft voice and slowly Willow realized that gentle arms where pulling her close. "Willow, come back," he repeated in that same tender tone.

Reluctantly, she tore her eyes away from the tarnished spot of her room, and peered upwards into Sirius' face. One hand met her cheek with a soft, soothing caress while another delicately rubbed her back. Willow realized he had pulled her into his arms and she was nestled against him.

Willow felt warm, safe. The anger within her receded and the tears lining the lids of her eyes plummeted down her face. She cried while taking in great, gasping, heaving breaths. She cried for Tara. She cried for what could have been. She cried for the shadow that lingered over what had been their bedroom, a place of many good memories. She cried for herself, for losing herself after Tara. She even cried for Warren, because no one deserved what she had done to him

"I'm sorry," she finally sniffled. "You really shouldn't see me like this."

"See you like what?" he whispered as he ran his fingers through her hair. "See you in mourning over someone you loved?"

Willow shifted and pressed her cheek against his chest. "See me having a breakdown," she muttered.

She felt him shrug. "You would be mad if you thought you had the patent on breakdowns in this room, love. I know what it's like to lose someone you love to a cold-hearted fiend. I know all too well. Except I've had to face it over thirteen years and it's still so fresh for you. Trust me; this time of the mourning is the hardest part."

Sirius began rocking her back and forth as Willow closed her eyes; her tears subsiding and exhaustion starting to take over.

At some point she must have dozed off because she awoke to feel him gently tucking her in bed. "Don't go," she mumbled as his figure began to retreat.

He froze, his silhouette outlined by the light of the moon.

"Stay," she commanded as she absent-mindedly patted the bed next to her, her voice thick with drowsiness.

"Ah, Willow, um," he trailed off nervously.

Her eyes widened as she woke up a little bit more. "Please? I don't want to be alone in this room. I'm afraid of what I'll dream," she said in a childish voice.

Leaning over the bed, she could see the contours of his face as he gave her a slight smile. "Willow, I may be a wizard, but even I cannot chase the bad dreams away." His brow wrinkled in thought and then he pulled a pillow off the bed and tossed it on the floor. With an incantation and a flick of his wand a cozy cot appeared. "But I can do this."

"How did you…?" she asked in wonder.

Flashing her a charming smile, he answered. "Magic, my dear." Waving his wand at himself, his clothing turned back into the same pajamas Buffy had originally given him, looking no less ugly in the dim light.

She smiled and laughed quietly. "I thought you hated those pants."

He gifted her with another bright smile and gently pulled her covers up. "I do," he responded simply as he turned his back to lie down on the cot.

"But I love to see you smile more," he finished.

Willow fell asleep with a smile on her face and slept without a single bad dream take place.

* * *

A/N:

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed- I love you guys : )

Please let me know what you think about this chapter. I was feeling especially inspired and it is one of my favorites so far -- I hope that comes across well.

Thanks!

*"_After all, his bloody older sister was an official Death Eater and Peter spoke so shamefully about her that you'd never think he would have joined her."_-- But hark, doth thou protesteth that Peter had no Death Eater sister? Well, JKR never gave us a family tree… hence I get to fill in the blanks for my (and your) wicked amusement ;)

_*"It's where the evil baddies like to go when they're kind of lame and not so powerful" -- _As we all know, Voldemort IS indeed at his parent's house, although not exactly in the basement. Good guess, Wills! ; )

PS: Aren't you pleased how well I'm doing with lengthy chapters? :D I know some prefer them this way and at the moment longer chapters are what the story calls for.


	29. Buffy Summers, Counselor Extraordinaire

Chapter 29: Buffy Summers, Counselor Extraordinaire

Two weeks had passed since Willow had woken up in her Sunnydale bed and now she was enjoying the warm September sun while she meditated. Her adjustment to being back home had been going better than expected and she was slowly starting to develop a new routine. She spent a good portion of the day in meditation - Willow understood that her recovery had been cut short by their escape from England so she made certain to try to stick to the schedule that Amelia had given her.

With all of the Scoobies either at work or school all day - Willow still couldn't believe that Buffy was offered a job this last week at their old high school - she found herself spending a lot of time with Sirius. Since their conversation regarding their past demons, it seemed their bond had strengthened. His presence was a comforting one to Willow and she enjoyed their conversations on magic and their past -which included both funny and not so fun stories - and she loved watching his reactions as she introduced him to the 'Muggle' world. Sirius was fascinated by all the inventions and was still flummoxed on the far reaching spread of the internet - it was cute to see his eyes light up when spotting a new toy to play with.

Their burgeoning friendship aside, Willow was still pretty confused about him when it came to something more. The more time she spent with him the more she found conflicting emotions rise within her. A part of her was attracted to him, but a larger part of her sought to ignore it - like if she closed her eyes her feelings would disappear. Sirius Black was making her question a lot of her conceptions about herself and she did not like it one bit.

Willow hated being confused. She was used to being the Queen of Knowledge - the counterpart to Cordy's Queen of Bitchiness title - and it bothered her to not have all the answers.

She was thankful that Sirius had been a perfect gentleman since he arrived here - no blitzkrieg kissing attacks against a tree, no sirree. That definitely lessened her confusion - to an extent. Because then Willow would be confused about why she was upset that Sirius hadn't pulled another blitzkrieg again!

There seemed to be no winning with her internal arguing self.

"Hey Willow!" called Buffy's peppy voice as she sashayed outside in a tan sundress with her hair pulled back in a teacher-y authority figure way. "What's the what?"

She smiled at her best friend. They had begun sliding back into their old roles and were already pretty comfortable with each other again.

"You know, just meditating, communing with the wilderness and talking to it. You?"

Buffy tossed her a wry grin and plopped down next to her in the grass. "Just got done communing with teenagers, which is kinda like the same thing as speaking to the wilderness, what with the wild craziness of it."

"How was your day, you working woman you?" Willow hoped it had been a good day. A couple days ago one of her students was died from a heart defect and Buffy had taken it pretty hard. Sure, Buffy was the Chosen One and all, but sometimes Willow wished her friend had others to share the weight of the world with her.

"Not bad," she responded with a slight shrug. "I definitely had one girl start crying to me, which hey, I can deal with that." Her lips pursed. "I'm just used to hitting things as opposed to comforting things. Or comforting people by hitting things that are trying to kills them."

Willow chuckled. "Well, think of it like this - now you're starting to earn valuable job skills that do not involve killing evil things nor flipping burgers. Your resume is sure to look all purty now."

Her fingers twining around the long blades of grass - Xander really needed to get to cutting that - Buffy tore a few blades out and tossed them at Willow. "Oh, hush, you. Not everyone can have CIA-level hacking skills or the kind of wacky witchiness that makes Glenda the Good Witch jealous."

They laughed and just rested outside for a while in silence, enjoying the light breeze and warm sun.

After a while, Buffy spoke up. "So where's Sirius?"

Willow, now lying down with her head resting on her arms, looked over at her. "He took off with Dawn to visit the butcher's shop for Buckbeak. Dawn's trying to teach him about our 'bloody annoying Muggle money', she imitated in a bad British accent.

Buffy snorted. "Who would have ever thought I'd end up with a hippogriff in my backyard?"

At his name, Buckbeak gave them a considering look before returning to clean his feathers.

"Yes, we do have a magnet for weirdness. It's like we're carnies, but worse. Good thing that Sirius knew a spell for camouflaging Buckbeak so the neighbors would never notice him."

With a loud laugh, Buffy rolled her eyes at Willow. "Do you think it would have mattered if he didn't? Will, I've been having knock-down, drag-out fights with vampires and demons at my house - who _knows_ how many windows have broken in the process - and my neighbors have never once commented or call the police for a noise violation."

Holding her stomach, Willow cracked up with laughter and Buffy joined in.

As their laughter subsided Willow noticed that Buffy's expression had taken a more serious turn.

"Will?"

Ugh. Buffy's look and tone were not a good indication that they were going to keep talking about silly things.

"Yes?" she queried warily.

Buffy sat up, crossing her legs underneath her. "Hey now, don't be all Worried-Voice Girl. I've been extremely good in waiting, but I can't anymore."

Crap. This was the conversation that Willow had been dreading. She had been dreading this even more so than the Giles phone conversation where she had to discuss her relapse and have him give her the hairy eyeball through the phone last week.

"You've been here two weeks and I've been _dying_ to ask but Xander told me to calm down with the inquisitive girly stuff and to let you acclimate - even though I know he's curious too."

Willow just nodded glumly, _really_ not liking this conversation and wishing she could whip out a portal right about now.

"So what's the deal with Sirius?" she asked, her piercing green eyes raking over Willow for some sort of subtle clue.

Sitting up, Willow shrugged. "What do you mean?"

Throwing more grass blades at her, Buffy rolled her eyes. "Hey now, I'm the blond one here and thus the only one that can play dumb. You know what I mean. There's obvious sparkage and you two spend a lot of time together."

Willow shrugged again and tried to figure out what to say. Goddess knows this was the very topic Willow kept avoiding to think about.

"Will! Come on, do I really need to make with the 'splainy? Cause I will. Okay, let's see. First," she threw up one finger as she began counting, "you were practically giddy and jumping on top of him that first night when you woke up here. Second, he freaking jumped in front of a curse for you and saved you. Third, you got way too angry with the Wicca darkness when those Aurora dudes-"

"Aurors," Willow corrected. She had been learning a lot about the Wizarding world these last couple weeks and she was prone to correct her friends with her teacher-y ways.

"-Yeah, them; when they hurt Sirius. Fourth, then Dawn told us how she saw Sirius leave your bedroom the next morning."

Crimson stained Willow's cheeks. Sheesh, that had been quite the debacle - it had taken several days before her friends would stop hounding her about that. Thankfully, they never said anything to Sirius - Willow would have died of embarrassment.

"I _told_ you what had happened and Sirius stayed because I had asked him to and he even transfigured my pillow into his own bed. There was no naughtiness of any kind," she retorted indignantly.

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Uh-huh. Wait, was that before or after he cuddled you to sleep?"

Willow just glared.

"_And _finally, since then you two have been super chummy and it's like sometimes you're in your own little world together." Buffy gave her a victorious grin. "Now, I'm no lawyer, but I think the facts speak for themselves, Ma'am."

Making a point of ignoring her, Willow laid down and closed her eyes.

"Aw, c'mon Will. It's not good to keep emotions and feelings and juicy news like this bottled up." Sidling closer to Willow, she laid down on her stomach and cradled her chin in her hands.

"Have you ever just thought that maybe we are just friends?" she asked irritably.

Buffy paused and replied. "Yes. But only for about fifty seconds."

Opening her eyes, Willow scowled. "You know, I think Dawn better be careful or her title as Most Annoying Summers is about to be stolen."

Pleading eyes and a pout met her stare. Willow didn't think she was getting out of this one. Damn Buffy. She had super strength and super annoying best friend skills.

Besides, a part of her _did_ want to confide in someone, after all.

Sitting up, Willow asked her "Truth?"

Buffy nodded eagerly as she matched Willow's move.

"I'm confused," she replied honestly with a frown.

Buffy mirrored her frown. "How so?"

"Um, gee, let's see here…Maybe because almost three years ago I became a lesbian?" she answered dryly with a raised brow.

"Yeah. Have'ta say, I was wondering about that. So…" Buffy trailed off.

Willow shrugged. "There is _something_ about Sirius, something from the first moment we met. I was kinda, um," her cheeks heated up - Willow was never good at talking about these things. Listening, yes. Talking, no. "I was kinda attracted to him from the beginning. You know he was all older handsome dirty Aragorn type man. And then when he stayed over for dinner I started to like his personality - he was fun and caring and he made me remember how to smile. Of course, then there was the 'Misunderstanding'," which was how they now referred to that day. "And then, I dunno." She shrugged again, unsure of how much to tell - that kiss for example.

"So how do you feel about him now?" Buffy asked, her eyes trained on Willow's every nervous movement.

"There's something about him. I like spending time with him and he just," she paused, trying to come up with a good enough word, "_gets_ me. I'm comfortable talking to him about almost anything. And we have fun," she finished with a smile, reflecting on one of his earlier good jokes.

"Uh-oh. You've got 'but' face."

Willow made a face at her. "_But_ I'm confused," she sighed. "It feels wrong to even _think_ of another person like that after Tara. I still miss Tara. A lot. The pain has lessened since I've returned here and I have been able to deal with it better now, but I feel like thinking warm fuzzy thoughts about someone else is an act of betrayal."

"Will," Buffy sighed.

"_And _I'm so confused about why the heck do I even like him. I mean, he's a man. Who, according to Dawnie," she grimaced, "has definite man parts. I mean, yes, I was in love with Xander for years. And yes, I definitely loved Oz. But then Tara came along and changed everything. I like women now. Gay, and all that." Willow let out a frustrated huff and crossed her arms.

"Happy now?" she asked belligerently, still not really comfortable with spilling everything she had said.

"No," Buffy shot back, annoyed. "I am not happy now that I realized my best friend is going crazy with a massive amount of confused thoughtage." She took a moment to collect her thoughts. "Will, has it ever occurred to you that maybe you're _not_ a lesbian?"

"Um, Buff, hello? Gay now? After all, I like-a the pretty ladies."

"Um, hello? Bi-sexual ring a bell to you?" Buffy retorted with a raised brow.

Willow paused and thought that over. "Um, well I…" Her hands began fiddling with the hem of her skirt. "I guess I just thought it was an all or nothing deal. I mean, while I was with Tara I never really looked at guys anymore."

"Yeah, but you were with Tara then. And if you were checking out other girls at the time, that would make sense because that part of your sexuality would be new to you and it would make sense for you to explore that side of yourself," Buffy pointed out thoughtfully.

Giving her an amused look, Willow smirked. "Wow, you really are a counselor, aren't you?"

With a laugh, Buffy rolled her eyes and redirected the conversation. "So, what do you think? Do you think that maybe you are bi? I mean, I think it's cool if you are. It just means you fall in love with people regardless of their outer shell."

Willow pondered that idea. "I guess I am." She frowned. "I guess before I just saw my sexuality world in black and white. Or rather, Tara and everyone else." Hmm. This wasn't a revelation she was expecting today, although it did make her feel a lot better - it just felt right somehow.

"Thanks" she told Buffy with a quick hug. "That makes my head hurt a bit less."

"Of course. Gotta fine tune my counseling skills now, after all," she said with a wink.

Willow grinned and shook her head. "I'm surprised you haven't purchased a leather couch yet."

Buffy's eyes brightened at the idea of shopping. "Ooh! Good idea!"

* * *

A/N:

Hmm, not sure if daily updates are back, but enjoy them while you can ;) I've just been drawn into this story a bit more this week.

As always, I loooove reviews. For those of you who review on top of tracking and being awesome readers, I salute you. And give you cookies. Yum! : )


	30. A ‘Clueless’ Moment

**Chapter 30: A 'Clueless' Moment**

**A/N:**

Wow, I have some of the most splendiferous readers ever! A lot of people gave so amazing remarks in their reviews, thank you so much for taking the time to do so. It was good to hear the opinions of other fans who feel that Willow was slighted in the abrupt change in her character development by boxing her up neat and nice in a triangle-shaped box.

I think I may have forgotten to thank someone earlier, so my humblest apologies (!), but I would like to express a very special thank you to the following awesome readers for enjoying this story enough to rec it: a href="." RipchordGirl/a, a href="." syd/a, a href="." Miranda/a, a href="." amari/a -- Thank you!!

**Time line: **Chapter takes place 3 weeks after their Sunnydale arrival, during part of episode 4 'Help' and episode 5 'Selfless'-- Obviously I mixed parts of the timeline together to better fit this story.

**Note in regards to canon: **I like canon. Mucho like. Except for the parts I disagree with, of course. However when my story will take place in an episode where I do not think Sirius' presence would make a difference to the outcome or serves no purpose for the characters in their development, I will only write the 'behind the scenes' parts. This allows me to stay true to canon and showcase in this story that certain canon events are still occurring. Let me know what you think, in regards to how I go about writing this -- Writing around Buffy episodes is new to me ~ usually I don't even bother and a lot of my normal stories take place after 'Chosen' where I can play more freely : )

* * *

Sirius realized that in the last three weeks that he had been in Sunnydale, he had neglected to spend much time with Buckbeak. So while Willow was out having a Saturday lunch with Xander, Sirius was outside with his feathered friend.

For his part, Buckbeak seemed to be a lot happier having a stable home rather than making secret night flights to find a new hideout. Of course, the poor fellow made it clear that he wanted to get out of the backyard and stretch the wings a bit, but Sirius was still worried what would happen if a wizard happened to spot him. So for now, Buckbeak had to make do with the backyard.

Wrinkling his nose in disgust, he said "I_Wingardium Leviosa/I_," and flicked his wand at the bucket containing Buckbeak's butcher shop meal. The carcass neatly deposited itself in front of Buckbeak who gave a noise of approval and swallowed it whole.

"Good? Bet it beats living off raccoons and squirrels, doesn't it?" he asked with a wry smile.

Letting out a squawk, Buckbeak made it clear that he was clearly over those living conditions.

Sirius chuckled and patted the hippogriff's shining coat.

"Sirius!" he heard Buffy call. Turning, he saw her and Dawn approaching him, both wearing identical mischievous grins.

Uh-oh. He had been living on their couch (well, he transfigured it into a bed at night) long enough to know trouble when he saw it. Not to mention, for the last week Buffy had been smiling at him a lot - like in one of those 'I know something you don't know' type ways. However, Sirius realized that all of Willow's friends were very peculiar so he hadn't questioned her oddity much.

"Hello Buffy, Dawn. Care to feed Buckbeak?" Sirius flashed a wicked smile as he floated Buckbeak's next meal towards them. They both yelped and jumped back, leading him to start laughing.

"Come now, Buffy. Surely you're used to creepy dead things by now?" he asked. After the first few days here the 'Scoobies' had informed Sirius on Buffy's life as a Vampire Slayer and all the mishaps that went along with it - including many funny stories about Dawn getting kidnapped on Tuesdays a lot. Of course, Sirius imagined a girl who grew up as the Slayer's kid sister for sixteen years was bound to find her share of trouble.

"Gross, Sirius! I swear, you're as bad as Xander sometimes," Buffy griped, her green eyes flashing dangerously. "Now 'poof' this thing away or there'll be one more dead body in my backyard," she threatened with a falsely sweet smile.

Sirius obliged, laughing all the while. "I'm terribly sorry," he said in the proper voice that his mother had practically beaten into him as a child. "I suppose I thought the Slayer had a stronger stomach than that. My mistake."

Buffy made a face of annoyance that quickly shifted into a smile. "It's all right," she said brightly, much to his confusion.

"That's…good," he said cautiously, definitely not trusting the glint in her eye now. It reminded him of when James would get a particularly devious idea.

"You see, Dawnie and I have been talking. We like you Sirius. You're a nice guy, you fixed our basement pipes with some cools spells, you're pretty entertaining, and you brought us Buckbeak - our new favorite person, er creature."

Buckbeak trilled happily as Buffy pointed towards him. The brat certainly did enjoy a lot of attention from the ladies - he had probably gotten as sick of Sirius as Sirius had gotten of him after a while and loved new people showering affection upon him. After Sirius had 'officially' introduced Willow and taught her the proper greeting, Buckbeak had even started to warm up to her.

"That's good to know," he said slowly, wondering where this was leading up to.

"And because we like you," began Dawn with an excited grin, "we are going to take you shopping for clothes!"

Cocking his head to the side and giving them a puzzled look he asked, "Shopping? That's something you're going to do because you like me?"

"Uh-huh!" they eagerly nodded.

Letting out a barking laugh, he shook his head no. "Thank you, but I do not need to go shopping. Never enjoyed clothes shopping much."

The sisters exchanged a glance and sighed. "Here's the deal, Sirius. You dress like a combination of the Mad Hatter and Johnny Depp on a bad day and that is just not of the good," Buffy stated bluntly.

Shocked, Sirius just started laughing. "What's wrong with my clothes? These are fashionable, I'll have you know. Quite elegant," he added with waggling brows.

"I knew you from were England, I just didn't realize you were from eighteenth-century England," Dawn snorted.

Sirius gasped mockingly. "Why you little minx!" he scolded, but his eyes were lit with mirth. "Trust me; this is the style of the wizarding world."

"But Sir-i-us!" Buffy moaned. "That is exactly why we need to take you shopping, besides the fact that you need it. You're in southern California now; you can't be looking all conspicuous with," she shuddered, "that velvet jacket."

Pondering her words, he realized that she did have a point. Since being here he had stayed mostly at the house - either spending time with Willow or reading her magic books, trying to find something to help Harry against the imminent fight against Voldemort. But he could acknowledge that he really did have no clue as to how American men dressed.

Because, no offense to Xander, Sirius really did not want to take away ideas from him.

"Fine," he replied grimly, knowing that this trip was probably going to be more trouble than it was worth.

Buffy and Dawn squealed and jumped up and down, while Buckbeak just gave him a look of pity.

~*~*~*~*~

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Xander asked in a concerned tone.

Willow nodded and began walking through the graveyard until she spied Tara's grave. Her hand cradled the stones she held and very gently she laid them on top of the gravestone. Although Willow practiced Wicca, today she had wanted to honor Tara in her old Jewish tradition. Her family members placed stones on top of graves to show that someone had visited; it was a sign of honor and respect. For Willow, she thought the stones were more appropriate than the traditional flowers. Flowers eventually wilt but the stones symbolized the permanent place that Tara's memory had in her heart.

She knelt next to the grave. "Hey."

Her fingers touched the smooth grooves that formed Tara's name.

"It's me."

Willow knew everything in the world was connected but she was still unsure about life after death - but a part of her hoped that somewhere Tara was listening.

After Willow had spent about an hour spending time speaking to Tara and reflecting on the sweet but short life they had lived together, she walked back to the bench outside the cemetery where she knew Xander was waiting.

"Hey," she said softly, her throat feeling almost raw from the sheer amount of talking and crying that had gone on in the last hour.

"Hey yourself." Xander drew her into a huge bear hug and Willow gave a small smile.

She really was fortunate to have such amazing friends. Sometimes Willow wanted to be angry and rant at the world… But in the grand scheme of things, the Goddess had seen fit to bless her with loved ones and a comfortable life.

If only she had been able to keep Tara, too.

"How was it?" he inquired as they began the drive.

"Okay," she sighed.

One hand left the steering wheel to comfortingly rub her arm.

"It was nice," she amended as she further reflected. "For a long time I felt too guilty to really talk to her. But I think physically being here, at her gravesite, made it easier to talk."

Xander just nodded. That was one of the things she loved about him - he knew just when to listen and just when to speak. In a way, his silence emboldened her to continue talking.

"I miss her still. But being back home where everything happened and mediating… I think I've finally realized that she's gone. Tara's not coming back. Which makes me sad, because sometimes when I wake up it all feels like a bad dream - and then I remember it all over again. That Tara being gone is real life, not just some nightmare."

"That's understandable Will. Remember all the awkward moments we had in the wake of Jesse's death sophomore year? We'd be talking about something funny that we'd have to tell him-"

"-And then we would remember we couldn't talk to him anymore," she finished sadly.

After a few more minutes Xander broke the silence. "But you said it's getting easier?"

Willow considered his words. "I don't, I mean, well…" She frowned and turned to him. "Is it getting easier to not have Tara in my life anymore? To not suffer from white hot pain every time I think of her? Yes. With each day the pain is lessening. But I feel guilty that it is lessening."

"I don't want her to think that I've forgotten her," she said in a softer, melancholy tone.

Willow neglected to mention what she really felt guilty about was having feelings for Sirius. It was part of what she had discussed at Tara's grave, trying to talk to her and reassure Tara that she loved her and how guilty she felt for enjoying Sirius' company.

"Will, you know Tara wouldn't want you to suffer like that. She loved you. She would want you to be happy, not to live in the past," he said earnestly.

Shifting in her seat, Willow placed her forehead against the cool glass of the window. "In theory, I know that."

He clucked his tongue at her and lightly tapped her hand. "Remember how awesome Wesley was at being a Watcher because he knew all the theoretical stuff?"

Grimacing, she turned back to him. "No," she drew out. "He sucked as a Watcher."

"Exactly," he replied smugly. "Understanding things from an intellectual viewpoint is not the same as understanding them here," he tapped his chest, "in your heart."

Sighing, Willow mentally concluded that Xander was right. Between this and the hammer-power talk he had almost begun to rival Buffy for the coveted role of Willow's best counselor.

"You're right," she admitted, to his delight that was evidenced by a large smile. "Would you mind dropping me off at campus? I think I want to walk around."

With a frown he glanced at her quickly before his eyes resumed paying attention to the road. "Why? And how will you get home?"

"I haven't been there yet and I feel like I should go there and visit - to walk around the place where Tara and I met. And the shuttle will take me back into town; if I call you can you pick me up from the stop?"

"Of course, Will. I'll probably just be at the house. Today I promised to show Sirius the greatest of all Muggle inventions - the video game." Xander's eyes shone with excitement and she giggled.

"Gee, excited to have another male around the house, huh?"

Xander rolled his eyes. "I love you girls, but a man's got to do man things sometimes - like play Soul Caliber II. Sirius is all right in my book so it's good to have him around. And of course, he's a lot cooler than most of the other guys we've had joining our Scoob-tastic adventures," he snorted.

"Hey! Oz was cool," she stated defensively.

"Yes, Will, you know I liked Oz," he explained patiently. "And Riley was mostly okay, until towards the end when I just felt bad for him because of the Buffy thing. But Angel and Spike? Not okay." He shook his head vehemently. "I'm actually relieved that Spike is crazy in the school basement instead of being around us all the time."

Willow didn't comment. She loved Angel, but Xander would never get over his dislike of the vampire. Spike… Well, she had sometimes liked Spike but after the near-rape of Buffy she wanted to break off his fangs and wear them as earrings - even if he was all soul-have-y right now.

"By the way," he began gently. "What do _you_ think of Sirius?"

Giving him a menacing look, she responded. "Oh Goddess, not you too!"

Chuckling, he shrugged. "I'm just trying to decide if I need to give him the Shovel Speech or not."

Mouth gaping, her eyes flashed with warning. "Alexander LaVelle Harris! Don't you even dare!"

Giving her an innocent smile, he responded. "Now Will, I didn't say I I_was/I _going to, I was just wondering if I _I needed/I _to."

"Xander," she growled. "Let me guess - Buffy told you."

At least he had the decency to give her a guilty look. "Yes."

"Xand, just be good. For now, at least," she pleaded. "I need to figure some things out."

He nodded. "I understand."

"Will, by any chance does he know about Tara?" he added.

Squinting, Willow tried to recall all their conversations - while they discussed a variety of topics, the 'exes' conversation had been purposely avoided. "Well, I did tell him about Tara dying before I went all evil."

"Really?" he asked, surprised. "You told him about Tara's death?"

"Hmm. Well, yeah," she said as she struggled to recall their first major conversation. "Oh, well. Hmm. I mean, I told him that someone I had loved very much had been murdered…I guess I haven't specifically talked about Tara. Why?"

He shrugged. "Just wondering. It's kind of obvious that he's attached to you. I was just wondering if maybe he had backed off because he knew you were still recovering from her death."

With a shrug of her own, she replied. "Maybe."

"Ok Wills, here you are," he announced as he pulled up next to the Sunnydale University Library.

"Thanks Xand," she said as she enveloped him into a hug. "For everything."

"Always," he said with a warm smile.

And Willow knew he meant that.

~*~*~*~*~

"I bet Willow would really like that," Dawn commented as Sirius stepped out of the changing room in jeans and a dark blue shirt that contrasted prettily with his pale eyes.

Those pale eyes brightened considerably. "You think so?" he asked.

Then, as if realizing the display of emotion, his face became more stoic. "Yes, I suppose it is a nice shirt," he said casually.

Dawn hid a grin - the man obviously had it bad for Willow. He hadn't discussed his past life very much, but from what she gathered the twelve years in a demon-y prison and one year living off rats had impacted him roughly. She wondered if part of his attachment stemmed from the fact that Willow had been the first person to be nice to him since his arrest - besides his godson and old best friend. That would explain a lot, but even besides that Dawn could see the chemistry between them.

_IEspecially/I _when they talked about magic. Sirius and Willow compared and contrasted their magical abilities a lot - and of course Dawn listened in whenever possible. Admittedly, she was very jealous of Sirius' world where kids got to go to magic school when Willow, Tara, and Buffy had always strictly prohibited her from their kind of magic.

It _I so/I _wasn't fair.

In fact, Dawn had been extremely tempted to play with Sirius' wand - just to see if it would work - but the damned wizard kept it on his person at all times.

Also, so not fair.

"Ooh, very pretty Sirius," stated Buffy as she carried an armload of more clothes. "Now try these."

"Buffy," he sighed in exasperation. "We've been bloody shopping for two hours. I even let you do that '_I _Clueless_/I_' thing, or whatever you called it, where you took pictures of me in the different clothes on those camera things on your telephones-"

"Cell phones," Dawn corrected with a smile.

He rolled his eyes. "Bloody whatever."

"Well," Buffy began haughtily. "We wasted at _Ileast/I _fifteen minutes begging you to let us take pictures! So that doesn't count."

"And I only relented because you kept snapping them anyways without me knowing it! At least this way I was able to form a more dignified expression," he replied in an outraged tone, but Dawn could tell that he wasn't being serious. Okay, _Sirius_ but not serious. Sirius was, oddly enough, not a very serious guy, unless it was about dark magic or that big bad wizard or his godson. Otherwise, he was all bark and no bite.

"Just one last one?" Buffy implored with wide doe eyes.

"Fine. One sodding more outfit," he huffed.

A few minutes later they heard him call through the door. "Oh no! You have to be kidding me! Are you purposely trying to make me look like a right prat?"

"What did you give him?" Dawn asked with an amused look.

Buffy just grinned and turned to shout in Sirius' direction. "C'mon Sirius! You said one more!"

"But they don't even bloody fit!" he insisted.

"That's how they are 'sposed to be!" she countered, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet in excitement.

Sirius slowly stepped out with a grim expression. Dawn had to clap her hand to her mouth to keep from busting into gales of laughter. "You really enjoy seeing me in funny clothes, don't you?" he asked Buffy dryly.

Sirius looked annoyed as he modeled a 2XL Roca Wear black tee-shirt embossed with gold designs and very baggy urban-style jeans that barely rested in his slim hips.

She laughed and took one final picture. "Now, now, this is one of the many types of American fashion design - and definitely looks good on the right person." Frowning, Buffy took in his entire look and smiled impishly. "Clearly, that is not you."

"Clearly," he stated blandly.

Buffy snickered. "Oh, this one was just for the dead carcass in my face earlier," she replied lightly. "That'll teach you, mister."

One brow raised in amusement as he stared at her. "Oh, you think you can pull a prank on me, huh?" A devious grin slid onto his face. "Clearly you don't know my reputation as one of the ultimate pranksters of Britain. You are surely going to regret saying that," he chuckled as he walked away, pulling up his baggy pants along the way.

Once Sirius had arrived and they had purchased the much cooler but still Sirius-Approved clothes, Buffy's cell rang.

"Hello? Willow! Is everything-" Buffy's face twisted into a grimace. "Wait. Okay. Wait. Spider Demon? Are you all right?"

Some of the color left Sirius' face, leaving the British man even paler than normal. He looked nervously from Buffy to Dawn, his hand suddenly clutching his wand.

"Like how -- Uh-huh...No no no no no -- don't even worry about it. I'll be fine. I'm with Sirius and Dawn, he can abracadabra them home and I'll drive to campus." Buffy shook her head. "No. You just-" Buffy nodded again and Dawn could hear Willow's voice over the phone.

"Yes. Of course. Of course." Her face scrunched up in revulsion. "Ripped out their hearts, my God...Oh, by the way, remind me to show you my camera phone pics from Sirius' 'Clueless' style shopping spree."

Buffy nodded a couple more times. "Mmmkay, bye Will."

Sirius pounced on her with fervent questions. "Spider demon? Is Willow alright? What happened? What can I do?"

Buffy's eyes widened. "Calm down and put the wand away, Gandalf. She's fine. The demon is near the University. Hey, can you take Dawnie home using that appy thing?"

Dawn rolled her eyes, annoyed as always at being kept away from the baddies. "An appy is slang for an appendix. You meant 'apparation'," she informed snidely.

"Oh whatever Dawn. You just know that because of Grey's Anatomy." She turned back to Sirius. "So?"

"Do you need any help with the demon?" he asked, his intense eyes making it clear he enjoyed a good fight.

"No, I'll be fine. Walking nightmare of all naughty demons here," she stated as she gestured towards herself.

Sirius stared down at her for a moment and nodded tentatively. "Alright," he agreed - after all he knew from stories just how capable the tiny blond was.

He held out an arm to Dawn. "Ready?"

Dawn screeched and leaped over to him. She had been waiting for a chance to apparate ever since she learned about it!

And of course, doing a side-long apparation with a handsome older man was certainly another benefit.

~*~*~*~*~

Sirius knocked softly at Willow's bedroom door. It was almost midnight and she was already wearing those absurd baby chick pajamas - although he had to admit they were kind of cute on her. He appreciated that she wore what she want and didn't try to flaunt herself too much, like some of the girls he had known when he was younger. Regardless of what she wore, she always managed to make it sexy somehow.

Looking up from her journal, she beamed a smile at him and invited Sirius to join her on the bed. "What's up?"

"I noticed that since you and Buffy returned from the fraternity house - without Xander - you both seemed a little down. I guess Buffy went through with it?" The 'it' of course was referring to Anya's murder. Sirius had never been taught a lot about demons in his Defense Against the Dark Arts classes, so he wasn't very familiar with them. However, he had been intrigued by this woman -er, demon - they had been discussing earlier who had been a demon for a thousand years, human for a few, and was once again a demon.

"Oh, that." She nodded softly, pain evident in her eyes. "I was able to intervene with D'Hoffryn and get him there. Anya, after a fight with Buffy, requested him to take the wish back."

"And he did?" Sirius asked, surprised. Demons weren't known for their kindness, that was for certain.

"Only in exchange for the soul of a vengeance demon."

His eyes widened perceptibly. "She's… gone?" he asked, his mind instantly flashing to the dementors.

Willow shook her head and smiled grimly. "D'Hoffryn is definitely a wheeler-dealer. Anya agreed, thinking he meant to take hers, but instead D'Hoffryn took the soul of her best vengeance demon friend - right in front of us."

Sirius shuddered, unwilling to comprehend what a sight that she must have witnessed.

"How is Anya?"

Willow shrugged. "She left. I feel bad knowing she's out there alone - I hope she won't leave. After seeing what she was willing to give up in order to bring those boys back to life, I have a newfound respect for her. Sure, she can be very annoying and bossy," Willow said with a fledging smile, "but she's a friend."

Darting a glance at him, she added lightly. "Just another day in Sunnydale, I 'spose."

"Well, I'm glad things worked out for your friend," he told her honestly. Quite frankly, he was not supportive of any dark creature so - even though it was a horrible way to go - he didn't feel sad about the demon he didn't know losing her soul. He was sure in the last millennia she had caused a fair amount of death and misery.

Sirius could feel the dark thoughts emanating from Willow and tried to think of how to pull her out of it. He wasn't sure why she would be so upset about seeing a demon lose its soul, but something was definitely weighing on her mind.

Then it struck him.

"Did Buffy show you the pictures on her telephone yet?" he asked with a smirk. "I have to say, thanks to my roguish good looks," he winked, "the pictures turned out very well. Except the last one," he added with a frown.

He was rewarded with a smile and left to retrieve Buffy's telephone.

* * *

A/N

I love reviews more than Cadbury Creme Eggs-- Which is saying a lot! ;)

Also, I wanted to give Jesse a shout-out. I know they were short on time with only 12 eps, but seriously? Their best friend dies and he never gets mentioned again??!

Aaaaand this chapter is about 4,300 words -- way more than normal. So hope you enjoyed that : )

Willow mentally concluded that Xander was right. Between this and the hammer-power talk he had almost begun to rival Buffy for the coveted role of Willow's best counselor.-- This referred to the talk about Willow being afraid of her power in Ep 4 during their walk to Tara's grave

.com/about_5070506_ --I always wondered what those stones meant and I heard it had to do with Judaism so I wanted to look it up and give fans a bit more insight.

.com/buffy/scripts/127_ -- definitely stole Buffy's dialogue on the phone-- that was not mine, it was from the show (minus the cell phone pix, of course)


	31. The Obsession of Lucius Malfoy

**Chapter 31: The Obsession of Lucius Malfoy**

Cold, grey eyes scanned the ancient text furiously, searching for something on the well-worn yellow pages that would provide him with new information. For four weeks he had been a man on a fervent, almost obsessive mission. Slipping silently through the shadows of Knockturn Alley he had gathered information from his less than savory acquaintances on the woman who had bespelled him in Hogsmeade, and now his acquisition of a range of new texts were providing him with more.

"Lucius," came the haughty greeting of his wife.

Dragging his eyes away from the leather bound book, he glared at her. She was standing in the doorway of his study and a single candle flame flickered over her fine aristocratic features and outlined her shapely silhouette. Blond hair was pulled sharply back into a complicated hairstyle, making her expression look even more severe. Thin lips were pursed in frustration and her hand rested on her waist - clearly she was not even attempting to hide her mood.

"My dear wife," he replied, an insincere smile blossoming across his face. They both knew that to be a false statement. After all, their marriage had been arranged by their families since they were children - it had never been a love match. Of course, they had managed it better than most Pureblood families, but as of late Lucius was finding her to be quite irksome and they continually clashed.

"Are you even bothering to join me for dinner, dear husband?" she retorted, sarcasm dripping from the last two words.

"Yes, yes," he answered dismissively with a wave of his hand. "This book on the Vampire Slayer just came in and I want to finish it." His eyes returned to his work, expecting his wife to submissively depart, as per the norm.

"Dammit Lucius!" she hissed and he looked up in shock to see her striding towards his desk. "Ever since you met that witch you have become obsessed with learning about her and her little friends. We have not had a proper meal in a month! This has gone on far too long and I demand you join me."

Placing his well-manicured hands against the desk, he rose to look down into her flashing blue eyes. "You say that I am obsessed?"

Narcissa nodded, her arms crossing in front of her chest.

Lucius spun around the desk to grab her shoulders. "What of it if I am? You were not there. You did not feel the power of the Dark One like I did. I would not be surprised if her power rivaled the Dark Lord's at the height of his power."

Doubt filled her eyes… And was that fear?

"What does it matter now?" she asked off-handedly. "The American is gone, and all rumors indicate that she has returned to her home."

"Foolish woman," he snorted. "What does it matter where she is?," he repeated. "She is power, pure dark power. And she can bring me - us - power. I must learn everything about her, and her acquaintances. Which means," he added as if speaking to a child, "I must commit myself to my study. If that interferes with your dining habits, well then that is not my concern at the moment."

Blue eyes met grey defiantly and Lucius' lips curled into a smile. Yes, their match was not one from love but Narcissa's Black family traits were fiery and certainly made life more entertaining.

When she was not driving him mad, that is.

"Fine," she snarled. "Enjoy your precious books, Lucius." His wife pivoted out of the room, her robes swishing around her.

Settling back into his armchair, Lucius smiled to himself. Oh yes, he would certainly enjoying his books. After all, he was learning a great deal about Willow Rosenberg and her friends.

And then he would make the opportunity to apply all his hard won knowledge, hopefully across the pond in Sunnydale, California.

* * *

**A/N:**

Short, I know, but I wanted to take a moment to show what's going on in a small part of the Wizarding world.

Also, I lost my USB which had all my story notes and *just* today found it, hence lack of updates. Grr-Arrrgh! But now I have my notes and all is well with the world ;)


	32. The HalfWay House for the Formerly Evil

**Chapter 32: The Summers Half-Way House for the Formerly Evil**

**A/N:**

The Scoobs like their nicknames and therefore have taken to shortening Sirius' name to just the first half – 'Sir'. Okay, pronunciation-wise that would be said like 'Sear', so hopefully no one gets confused by thinking people are referring to him as 'Sir' as in 'Sir and Madame.'

--------------

Willow and Dawn were sitting at the kitchen island, watching Sirius with amusement as he floated pancakes onto their plates. His shoulder length black hair was pulled back at the nape of his neck and he was wearing one of the outfits that Buffy and Dawn had picked out last week - dark denim jeans and a dark blue button-up dress shirt that complimented his eyes well. Willow had to admit that he looked especially nice today and she was more than tempted to find excuses to touch him. As he settled beside her, she pulled a nice 'carp diem' moment, as Buffy would have called it.

Her fingers trailed down his forearm, reveling in the smooth texture of his shirt. "Nice shirt. It brings out your eyes," she commented with a smile, feeling more than a little nervous to be the flirt-initiator. Usually that was Sirius' job, after all.

Sirius gave her a wolfish grin. "Thanks."

Dawn made a noise of objection. "Hey! I was the one to pick it out," she grumbled.

Beaming at her, Sirius extended a thank you to her as well.

A knock sounded at the door and Dawn jumped up with a squeal. "Oh crap! That's Kit and Carlos. I forgot that we were going to school together to celebrate Kit's new license and motorized transportation."

A minute later Dawn dragged in an attractive darker-skinned boy wearing jeans and a SHS t-shirt and a very alternative looking girl decked out in black. "Kit, Carlos, this is Willow and Sirius. Will, Sir, this is Kit and Carlos."

"Hiya," Willow said with a grin and a wave. She had been hearing a lot of these two but Dawn hadn't had them over yet – which considering how bad things turned out when people were invited over, that really wasn't a surprise.

"Hey there," Sirius said with a nod and smile.

"Hello," Kit and Carlos greeted them with bright smiles.

Carlos' eyes widened at the sight of their breakfast. "Oh, hey, Dawn, you got any more pancakes?" he asked eagerly.

Kit smacked his stomach. "Weren't you just finishing breakfast when I picked you up?"

"Kit, that was then. This is now. Don't people always say we should live in the present and not look backwards?" he asked matter-of-factly.

Sirius chuckled and muttered a quiet incantation over his plate of pancakes, successfully duplicating them. Turning around to face the hungry teen he held out the plate. "Will this do?"

"Oh yeah, thanks dude." Carlos settled into a stool and began eating with a fervor that was reminiscent of Xander.

Dawn and Kit shared an exasperated look as they joined him in sitting.

"So where's your sister?" asked Kit.

Dawn shrugged and grinned. "She woke up late; I think she's still in the shower. By the way, can I say just how much I love that you can drive now? No longer am I Dawn, the girl who hitches a ride with her lame sister, but I am Dawn, the girl who hitches a ride with her most awesome friend."

Kit rolled her eyes. "Whatever. You sister is cool – especially after the whole basement thing."

"Yeah, I guess so," Dawn said hesitatingly with a shrug. Kit and Carlos knew there was more to Sunnydale than meets the eye, but she hadn't been exactly forthcoming with the real scoop.

"Not to mention she's hot," Carlos added.

"Ew! Gross!" Dawn slapped his hand. "No naughty sister of mine thoughts for you, mister!"

"What? Come on? I can't help it if she's hot, plus she's like a teacher which adds major hotness," he argued.

Sirius hid a laugh behind his hand, thinking that this was the kind of guy he would have befriended in school as well.

Before Dawn could respond a shrill scream pierced the air.

"Buffy?" Willow called, unease making her belly suddenly twinge.

Loud, angry footsteps thundered down the stairs and headed for the kitchen. "Buffy, what's the-" Willow cut herself off, her mouth dropping in astonishment. "Buff?"

"WHO DID THIS?" Buffy shouted as she pointed to the top of her head.

"Still think she's hot?" Kit whispered with a smirk at Carlos.

Sirius nonchalantly took in the sight, but his grey eyes twinkled in amusement.

"Oh my," was all Willow could say.

Dawn could not suppress it any longer and began giggling uncontrollably, joined in by Kit.

Buffy's eyes narrowed at Dawn. "Dawn, did you do this?" she asked through clenched teeth.

"Um, uh, no," she answered truthfully, but her gaze traveled briefly to Sirius.

"Sirius." Buffy's tone dripped with venom as she slowly turned towards the wizard.

"Yes, Buffy? I must say, that is quite a fetching 'do for you. What made you decide to change your look? Did you perhaps want to fit in better with the younger crowd that you work with?" His face was void of anything but pure innocence as he responded with wide eyes.

Buffy gestured again to her hair - which was now lime green and in an eight-inch high spiked Mohawk. "Do this look like something I would want, Sirius?" she asked in a seething voice.

"Consider us even from the shopping fiasco," he smirked.

Buffy's eyes widened furiously. "Dawn, Kit, Carlos, go to school now. Please ignore any bloodcurdling screams begging for mercy that you may hear on the way out."

The three teens quickly shuffled out of there, after casting pitying glances towards Sirius.

As they were exiting, Xander walked in with a bemused smile. "Hey, what's up with the Scrappy Gang? They ran out of here real-" Xander's jaw dropped as his eyes landed on Buffy. "Ah, Buffster, you feeling all stressed again? Cause last time you did you got a haircut – which was really very cute – but this one isn't quite workin' for ya."

"I DID NOT DO THIS ON PURPOSE," she huffed angrily as she laid her hands on her waist.

"Oh, 'course not," mumbled a flabbergasted Xander. Then he saw Sirius wink at him and began snickering.

Buffy just glared at both Sirius and Xander, silently contemplating who to kill first.

Sirius began laughing. "Don't worry, Buffy, it's just a little spell I put on your shampoo. It'll wear off by tomorrow. Think of it this way - patrolling should be easier. You could probably stake the vampires with the sharp spikes in your hair."

Willow chuckled at that before Buffy turned her glare in Willow's direction.

"Sirius," she bit off. "Do you enjoy having four limbs?"

"Yes," came the cautious reply.

"Then I suggest you undo this spell before I begin ripping them off and beating you with them."

With a dramatic sigh, he nodded. "My, you are the drama queen. Fine then. Willow?"

Willow giggled and pulled a camera up from her lap. "Cheese!" she exclaimed and snapped off a picture of a very pissed off punk-rocker styled Slayer.

"Finite Incantatem," Sirius intoned with a flick of his wand. Instantly shiny, blond hair bounced around Buffy's shoulders.

She looked appalling at the three of them, especially her best friend. "Willow! You were in cahoots with him!"

"Well somebody had to tell me which shampoo you used," Sirius said with a wicked grin.

"Hey now, no telling," Willow shot him an annoyed look before her eyes gave Buffy a begging look. "Sorry, Buff. He has terrible powers of persuasion," she added with a shrug.

For the first time that morning, a smile played along Buffy's features. "Hmm. I bet," she said before she rushed out of the room, in a hurry to make up for lost time before work.

"Terrible powers of persuasion?" Sirius questioned as he waggled his eyebrows.

Willow rolled her eyes at him. "Oh, hush you," she said as she left the room, intending to get ready for the day herself.

Leaving Sirius to wonder just how best to make use of his 'terrible powers of persuasion' on Willow.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Sirius, do me a favor and check on the cookies in the oven?" called Willow over her shoulder as she straightened the living room.

"Sure." Sirius ambled over to the kitchen and pulled out the finished chocolate-chip cookies. "Mmm," he murmured as the delicious scent wafted up to his nose. Sirius had quickly discovered one of the best things about living in Sunnydale was Willow's penchant for baking when upset or worried. Not that he enjoyed seeing her upset, but it did make his now-growling stomach very happy.

Walking back to the living room, he leaned against the door frame and crossed his arms. "Speaking of cookies and your frantic cleaning, why are you going to so much trouble just for a meeting with your friends?"

She didn't bother to glance on him, entirely content on her cleaning. "Well, considering that my friends aren't normal and this isn't a typical meeting of friends, but a serious Scooby meeting, then cookies and worry are definitely needed."

Judging by her quick speech, Sirius knew there was something more to it than that. He grabbed her wrist as began to dust the mantle and gently plucked the feather duster out of her hand. "Willow," he began gently. "What's really wrong?"

Biting her lip, her eyes cautiously peered up into his. "Well, this is our first time we're all getting together to talk about the 'from beneath you it devours' badness, plus it's the first time Anya is going to be with us. I mean, sure, Buffy went to her apartment and they more or less made amends, but she did just try to kill her last week. Not to mention, things are still all weird with her and Xander."

Willow shrugged, her delicate shoulders lifting up lazily. "I just want to make Anya feel at home. I know what it's like to be all big and bad with the attempted friend killings and I want to make her feel welcome."

Sirius' heart warmed at her words. Willow Rosenberg was certainly one of the sweetest women he had ever met.

"It'll be alright," he offered comfortingly as he pulled her into a brief hug.

Except once he had her in his arms, he found himself unwilling to let her go. Dammit, he wanted Willow. He had been going slightly mad these last few weeks being so close to her without taking that next move. But he knew she was still fragile and although he didn't know all the details of the murder of her lover, he knew Willow was still recovering. James and Remus would certainly laugh to hear him now, but Sirius Black was trying to be a gentleman.

But damn it all to hell if he didn't want to throw her up against this wall and ravish her. After all, a recently escaped convict could only take so much after being exiled from women for over a decade.

"Thanks," Willow murmured her cheeks pink as she pulled back from the lingering embrace.

His finger traced the contours of her cheek, enjoying the soft feel of her skin. "Your friends are very lucky to have you – you take good care of them," Sirius whispered in a low voice as he gazed into her emerald eyes.

Willow's hand, still resting on his chest from their hug, curled her fingers around the fabric of his shirt. "Well, I'm pretty lucky, too." She smiled at him shyly. "To have such amazing people in my life – people like you."

Sirius felt his body react to her words and proximity. One hand lifted her chin up while the other cupped her waist to pull her towards him. A startled gasp left her lips and Sirius leaned downwards, entirely done being patient.

"Oh is that cookies I smell?" a female's voice interrupted them and their eyes jerked towards the door to see a young woman with shoulder-length honey blond curls walk in. She spotted them in each other's arms and frowned.

"Willow? Did you accidentally make any wishes and send us to an alternate world where you are not gay?" she asked in astonishment.

Willow practically leapt out of Sirius' arms and he had to stop himself from kicking something to relieve his frustration.

"Wha-what?" she sputtered. "N-No, Anya, this is Sirius, Sirius Black. Sirius, this is our friend Anya."

Forcing himself to breathe in deeply and not throw the bint out so he and Willow could resume their almost-kiss moment, Sirius stepped forward, smiled congenially, and extended his hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Anya."

Then he frowned as his brain caught up to what his ears had heard. Wait – was she saying that Willow was gay? No, no. She couldn't be. She would have bloody told him. Not to mention, he knew that she was attracted to him.

His lips quirked up into a half-smile. Unless of course, Sirius Black was just that damn good that he brought her back to the home Quidditch team. Oh yeah. Wait until he told James.

Sirius shook his head slightly when he remembered his mistake. Sometimes it was so easy to forget that he couldn't tell James these things anymore.

Anya was giving him a skeptical look as she viewed his many passing expressions. "Your man friend is rather strange, Willow."

"Uh, he's a man and a friend, but not my 'man friend', Anya," Willow responded with flushed cheeks.

"I'm sorry," Anya said sincerely as she flopped down on the couch. "I thought that was a more tactful observation. Would you prefer if I called him your sexy time friend or your boy toy?"

Sirius let out a choking laugh as he viewed the former demon with wide, unbelieving eyes. Merlin, is this how all demons talk? Somehow he would have expected a creature aged a thousand years to perhaps speak a bit more formally.

"Anya! Geez. No, it's not like that," she said in a scolding tone, like she was smacking Anya's hand out of the cookie jar.

Sirius' eyes darted towards her as he struggled to control his reaction. It's not like… that? Did that mean… Had Sirius been fooling himself?

No, she was probably just saying that with her friend in the room – or so he hoped. He was certainly feeling the urge to take her aside and ask about what Anya had said about her preference in partners.

"Sirius is from the Wizarding World. He's staying with us for a while."

"Oh, goody. Another member of the team," she responded dryly as she faced him. "Just remember, buster, it's my role to provide the much needed sarcasm here, so you better scrounge out your own niche and not even think about mine."

"Actually, that would be _my_ job," Xander interrupted as he and Buffy sauntered into the room. "I provide the much needed sarcasm and comic relief."

Buffy patted his arm and nodded. "Don't forget the donuts, too."

"Don't tell me you lot have started without me," added a new voice as the door opened to reveal a platinum-haired man covering himself up with a blanket. "That just breaks my bleedin' heart," he said snidely with a devilish smirk.

"No, we're currently just at the banter portion of the meeting. You haven't missed anything. Nice of you to make it, Spike," said Buffy.

Sirius stiffened and he grabbed wand from his jeans pocket, although he refrained from actually pulling it out. "This is Spike?" he asked harshly. "The vampire who is occasionally evil?" Willow had explained to him Spike's history with her friends and that he had a soul now, but Sirius knew what he had attempted to do to Buffy. He had been in Sunnydale only a short time, but he was finding himself already attached to the Slayer – and Sirius Black protected those close to him.

Spike's eyes narrowed as he took in Sirius from head to toe. "Yeah, what of it, mate? Just who in the bleedin' hell are you?"

Stepping in between them, Buffy held up a hand. "Sirius, yes, this is Spike. He's staying with Xander now in order to get away from the crazy school basement and he helps us. Plus, he's all Soul Man now, so not evil."

She gave Spike a threatening look that indicated he better play nice. "Spike, this is Sirius Black, he's a wizard and he's been staying with us."

"Oh-ho!" Spike started chuckling malevolently. "Sirius Black, eh? Bloody hell, mate, and you're worried about _me_ being occasionally evil. Slayer, don't you know this wanker's one of the baddest wizards to ever soil my homeland?"

"I was framed," Sirius spat out through clenched teeth, aggravated as hell that a bloody _vampire_ of all people would have room to judge him.

"Piffle," Spike snorted. "You bloody took out thirteen people and were locked up in that funny demon prison you lot have."

"It's true," Willow huffed defensively. "He didn't do it and those wizards wouldn't know the truth if it bit them in the ass!"

Sirius glanced at Willow in shock at her language – she normally was quite the lady. He flashed her a smile to show his appreciation.

Spike shook his head and gave Buffy a rueful look. "Honestly, Slayer, I know you like to recruit the evil types into your little gang, what with me, Over-Hanging Forehead, the vengeance demon, and the wicked witch there, but it's like you're operating a soddin' half-way house for the Formerly Evil."

"Shut up, Spike," Buffy responded in an irritated tone.

Spike rolled his eyes and sat down. "Where's the Niblet, by the way? I haven't seen here since she gave me the whole burning-me-while-sleeping shovel speech."

Buffy sighed and sat down in an easy chair – noticeably as far away from Spike as she could manage. "Well, after the Princess of Emo-land cut up my old cheerleading uniform to shreds, she locked herself in her room." Off Anya and Spike's questioning looks she added, "She's upset because she embarrassed herself in front of a boy she likes. She'll get over it."

With a furrowed brow Sirius asked, "What's cheerleading?"

Xander's expression turned wistful. "Ah, cheerleading. One of the best sports ever formed. Essentially, Sir, it's a bunch of beautiful women in tiny shirts and very short skirts jumping up and down in order to encourage the fans at a game to be all fan-like."

Sirius' eyes brightened. "Sounds excellent. Bloody shame we don't have those for quidditch – though I suppose the Bulgarian chaps get Veela, which is quite lucky for them."

"Veela?" Xander asked with a curious look. "They're better than typical cheerleaders?"

"Trust me," Spike snorted. "Don't get your hopes up; you wouldn't want to meet one. Doubt you could bloody handle yourself, Carpenter. The sirens are beautiful but got their own bit of wickedness. Incidentally, their blood is as intoxicating as their looks." He licked his lips absent-mindedly.

His statement was met with five disgusted looks.

"What?" he asked in annoyance. "I was a bad man, you know. What do you all expect?"

"Can we please get to the part of the meeting where we discuss the latest impending apocalypse? I'm bored already," Anya stated with a sigh.

"Right, then," Buffy agreed, as she gestured for Willow to begin. Willow described her encounter with the centaurs and the cryptic information they gave her regarding her being 'Balance Gal' and the statement 'from beneath you it devours.' Buffy picked up where she left off, describing her dreams of young girls being murdered and finally discussing D'Hoffryn's words the prior week.

"Well, as creepy messages go, you gotta give them points for coming up with that one," commented Xander lightly.

"Hallie mentioned to me that something bad was going down – all the demons are talking about it." Anya gave a noticable shiver when mentioning her deceased friend.

"Ok, but what I want to know is what is trying to devour us and how can I kill it?" Buffy stated in a strong voice, akin to a general's tone or authority.

"Right there with you, Slayer," added Spike.

"I could owl Dumbledore at Hogwarts – that man seems to know just about everything. It would make sense that he would know about this as well," Sirius suggested.

"Hogwarts?" Anya exclaimed. "And you know Dumbledore? Gosh, I can't believe that wizard is still around – I had forgotten how long lived you wizard folk are."

Willow gave her a scrutinizing look. "Wait, how do you know Professor Dumbledore?"

"Professor?" Anya let out a snort of laughter. "Can't say I'm surprised Albus went that route, but I haven't seen him in almost a hundred years." She smiled wistfully at old memories. "Oh yes, Albus was quite a gem – definitely helped me get a promotion."

"Dumbledore helped you get promoted within your vengeance demon ranks?" asked Sirius incredulously, wondering how on earth his old headmaster would have helped a demon.

"You betcha. Man's got fire," she answered, still smiling.

"How?" Sirius pressed.

Casting him a scornful look, she sniffed. "I'm not a curse 'em and tell 'em kind of former vengeance demon, wizard."

"Uh, yes you are Anya. I still have nightmares from some of the stories you told me from your demon days," Xander contradicted.

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever, Xander. Fact is, if Albus is still alive he's hella powerful and I'm not about to cross him by telling his business."

"Ok, Tangent Twins," she said to Anya and Sirius. "Back to the topic of major brewin' evil. Sirius will contact this Dumbo-dore person-"

"-Dumbledore," Sirius corrected with a cheeky grin, suddenly hoping the day would come when he could see those two meet – now _that_ would be interesting.

"Yeah, him. Anya, do you have any demon friends you can talk to?"

"Nope," she said with false, bitter cheer. "I'm responsible for having the soul sucked out of my last demon friend."

Awkward silence filled the space until Buffy cleared her throat. "Okay, well. Um, Spike you and I can go to Willy's and beat up people. And-"

A scream of anguish filtered down to the living room and ten eyes looked warily up at the ceiling.

"O-kay. Ah, Xand? Anya? Will? Maybe you guys can keep an eye on Dawn and make sure she doesn't spontaneously combust?"

"Gotcha," Xander nodded.

"Ooh! That reminds me. I made chocolate chip cookies!" Willow said eagerly.

"Excellent," Xander said as he rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "I hear teens in a snit love chocolate."

"Oh, and I have much practice hearing the agonizing stories of cruel heartbreak. I can be helpful," Anya said with a beaming smile.

"So is this the part where we stick our hands in the middle and do a little cheer?" asked Spike wryly with his trademark smirk as he twirled a finger in a circle. "Go team, and all that nonsense?"

"Shut up Spike," Buffy snapped before she turned back to her friends. "Good luck everyone. See you later tonight."

And with that remark, Sirius Black's first official Scooby meeting was dismissed.

A/N:

Oh, and I had to have a shout out to Dawn's seemingly non-existent friends : ) Not sure if they'll be featured much, but I wanted to establish that she *does* have a life outside of Buffy.

And I hoped you enjoyed Sirius' prank. I figured the meanest thing to do would be to go after Buffy's hair ;)

I've been toying with some fun ideas and the interesting bits will be unraveling soon. I cannot wait for your reactions *cackles maliciously* Let's just say you'll be seeing a bit more of Luscious Lucius Malfoy, some other HP main people, the American Ministry, fun magic, more on Anya's Wizarding connections, and some good 'ol fashioned loving ;) .. And yes, Greywizard, there shall be many shovel speeches ;) haha

I do so love reviews, so feel free to leave one! *wink*wink*nudge*nudge*


	33. When Pigs Fly

**Chapter 33: When Pigs Fly**

A/N: This chapter is based off S7E6 titled 'Him'. Occasionally I have used the same dialogue from the scripts and obviously do not own that.

Much thanks to a href="." Daevanus/a for giving this story a rec :)

And super mad thanks to the many reviewers – ooh, I love you guys more than Angelina Jolie loves adopting! Special thanks to the readers who review practically every chapter – y'all are gems!

Oh, and a special shout-out to AllenPitt for giving me suggestions about something that happens in this chapter with the Dawnster ;)

I think you all will be very pleased by the end of this chapter ;)

* * *

"Dawn, please stop crying. Please? Crying isn't going to make his love for me go away, you know."

Sirius studied the crying form of Dawn as Buffy attempted to comfort her and shared a glance with Willow, Xander, and Anya. "Who would have thought that people in Sunnydale do love spells?" he asked theoretically, clearly convinced that was the cause for Dawn and Buffy's madness.

"Actually," Xander said with a nervous laugh, "you'd be surprised. Heh."

Glancing at Xander in surprise, Sirius made a mental note to ask him about that comment later.

"You're right," Buffy nodded eagerly at Sirius' comment. "He's right," she told Dawn. "You're under a spell. Oh, poor little Dawnie."

"Can't you do some magic wand thing to fix this?" suggested Xander and he eyed the two females suspiciously.

"_Finite Incantatem_," Sirius spoke with a flick of his wand.

"Oh goody," Anya enthused and clapped her hands. "Are you two done obsessing with this trifling R.J. boy?"

"What?" screeched an appalled Dawn. "How could I simply forget the most beautiful soul that I've ever seen?"

"And R.J. is not a boy," Buffy stressed. "He's a man. With man parts. I felt them today when we were making out in the classroom."

"Ahhh!" shouted Dawn as she jumped from the couch and shot Buffy a betrayed look. "I cannot believe you! I trusted you!" With another tormented scream she stalked up to her bedroom and the overheard light exploded in her wake.

"Dawn, wait!" Buffy shouted as she raced after her sister.

"That was weird," Sirius commented as he cast a 'Lumos' spell. It made him think of a child's accidental magic.

"Weird about sums up our lives," Xander rolled his eyes.

"Looks like we have some work to do," Willow sighed.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sirius sniffed as he walked into the house with Xander and Spike after their trip to see R.J.'s brother. "Do you guys smell that?"

"Candles burning," Spike answered.

They rushed towards the smell and the sound of Willow's voice.

"_Oh, Hecate, I call on you,_

_I humbly ask your will be done. _

_Eliminate my foes for R.J.'s heart _

_And ensure that we never part. _

_Upon those who dare to lust, _

_Drive away their trust. _

_Turn them mad and into equine, _

_Thus forever making R.J. mi-"_

Xander's hand clamped over her mouth. "MMMM! MMMMM!" Willow's muffled screams escaped from behind his hand as her floating crystals crashed to the floor.

Staring the crystals dejectedly, she sighed. "Oh, man! Now I've gotta start all over. Hecate hates that."

"What the hell are you doing?" asked Xander furiously, and Sirius was liable to agree on that starting question.

Willow stood up and stared at her friend. "Proving I love R.J. the most!"

Spike snorted. "Come off it Red, you do realize the little bugger is a guy, don't you?"

Sirius was startled by the statement and glared at Spike.

"Yeah, I do know that Spike," she scoffed with rolled eyes. "But I just recently realized I am bi-sexual."

"Really?" Spike drawled with raised brows as he caught Sirius' smile at the comment.

"You are?" Sirius asked hopefully. Alright, he had no previous suspicion that she liked women – until Anya's earlier statement – but Sirius was completely fine with her being bi-sexual as long as she was primarily 'Sirius-sexual' and liked him the best.

"Yes," Willow answered him with a sad smile. "Thanks to you Sirius, you made me realize that part of me."

A bright smile lit up his face as Willow grabbed his hands. "Really?" he had to ask, feeling ecstatic to hear his hopes confirmed.

She nodded. "Thanks to you, I'm able to love R.J. as the beautiful man he is."

"What?" His brows furrowed in confusion as she continued.

"I'm sorry that I've upset you," she apologized with a shrug. "You're very nice, but you are just not R.J. I think I remember at one time harboring feelings for you, but I love another now. However, I would love to invite you to our wedding, since you made me realize how much I find men enjoyable as well." Willow released his hands and gave him a pleased look.

"So, can we find R.J. now?" she asked eagerly.

A hand clasped his shoulder and Xander offered words of comfort. "Love spell, man. She doesn't mean it."

"Right," Sirius nodded. Love spell or not, it still felt like he got hit with a nasty hex right in the gut.

He didn't even realize that Xander was pushing Willow out the door with Spike until Xander called for him.

"Yo, Earth to the Dog Star. We gotta find Buffy first before she kills the principal."

Sirius did not relish the thought of being stuck with Willow for the duration of this spell. "No, you and Spike can handle Buffy. I'll do a spell to search for Dawn and bring her back here."

Xander nodded and left, but not before Sirius caught a bit of sympathy in his eyes.

Merlin's balls. It was just a bloody love spell. Not Willow's fault.

Still. Didn't bloody mean he wanted to listen to her prattle on about the boy.

Now, time to distract himself and use his excess energy to find Dawn.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sirius apparated in a dark area next to a row of train tracks. "Dawn?" he called.

"Go away," he heard her mutter from the direction of the tracks. Following her voice he found her laying face-up in the middle of the tracks.

"Bugger it all to hell, Dawn! What in the bloody hell do you think you are doing?" he shouted, his nerves shocked to hell at seeing the teenager ready to give up her life.

"It doesn't matter," she responded forlornly and Sirius could hear the tears in her voice.

He shook his head, wishing he could give this R.J. fellow a proper hexing, followed by a physical beating, and began lifting her up.

"No! Leave me alone. I can't compete with Buffy for R.J. She's older and hotter and has sex that's rough and kills people. I don't have any of that stuff. But if I did this then his whole life he'd know there was someone that loved him so much they'd give up their life."

"Dawn," he said in a soft, shocked voice. "This is crazy talk. You are under a spell. Now get up." He tugged her arm up but she jerked it back.

Sirius stood up. "Fine, we will do it the Wizarding way. _Locomotor Dawn_!" He smirked with satisfaction as Dawn's body was floated up and a hundred yards away from the tracks.

"Hey. Hey!" she shouted as she pushed him once the spell went off. "You can't just use magic on me."

"Dawn, calm down," he said soothingly, one hand holding her shoulder and the other his wand. "You are under a very powerful magical spell. I just need to keep you out of trouble until we destroy R.J.'s source of magic – that damn jacket."

Dawn's eyes widened at Sirius, as if she was seeing him in a new light. "You're right."

His lips quirked. "Yes, I often am. Best you remember that, love."

"I'm under powerful magic. R.J. understands powerful magic," she stated in a voice of wonder and comprehension.

"Eh, actually we don't think he has a clue," Sirius corrected as he took her hand and conducted a side-along apparition.

They landed in the Summers' living room an instant later.

And a moment after that Sirius' world went black.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Dawn sighed as she looked down at Sirius' unconscious body and set the living room lamp back on the table. Sirius was a nice guy – especially because he made her realize the best way to show R.J. that she loved him the best – but she couldn't allow him to get in her way.

Noticing his wand nestled in his hand, she plucked it out quickly and examined it. It was very smooth and almost a foot in length, but the strangest part was how right it felt in her hands. Just for fun she gave it a little wave.

And was blown off her feet by the sudden explosion of the exterior wall. Gingerly getting to her feet she looked at her handiwork. A five foot by five foot hole had been blown into the wall behind their couch. Or rather, where the couch used to be. Now it was just a bunch of foam and fabric.

"Wicked," she gloated with a stretched smile. R.J. would love her for being magical just like he was.

A low groan emitted from the body near her feet and she ran out her newly improvised front door before Sirius woke up.

Dawn giggled. She couldn't wait to find R.J.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sirius felt someone softly shaking his shoulder. "Go 'way," he grumbled. His head was pounding like he had a hangover from hell and all he wanted was to sleep it off.

"Sirius, are you okay?" Mmm, he knew that voice. Shame he couldn't find the energy to grab the speaker of that voice and pull her into bed with him.

"Sirius, what happened? Did Dawnie knock you out so she could find R.J.? Oh my gosh, what if she's finding him right now?" The hand shook him harder. "Sirius! Wake up – you've got to tell me where she went so I can stop her from stealing the love of my life!"

A growl left his throat. That's right. Bloody love spell. Blimey, he wanted to tear that letterman jacket apart with his bare teeth.

His hissed as he blinked his eyes open, blinded by the lit lamps. "What'd that brat do to me?"

"Easy there, Sir. Dawn must have hit ya pretty hard, you're bleeding a bit," Xander informed him.

With a scowl he tentatively touched his forehead as he slowly sat up. He saw Xander, Buffy, and Willow looking at him with concern and Spike just rolling his eyes.

"Wake up, mate," Spike ordered. "Bollocks, what is it with you people? Between you and Giles you're making it seem like all us English blokes get knocked out easily like a bunch of poofters."

"Shut up Spike before I hex you," Sirius growled. He reached for his wand to wave it threateningly but it wasn't there.

"What the hell?" he swore as his hands fervently searched for his wand. "I don't have my wand!"

"Are you telling us that Dawn, an out-of-control and trouble-finding teenager – and that's when she's not even under a dangerous love spell – has managed to steal your magical wand?" Xander asked dryly.

"Yes," Sirius answered belligerently, extremely annoyed that a sixteen-year old girl had gotten the best of him and stolen his wand.

Then he realized how old Dawn is "No, it should be fine though. Muggles can't do magic, even if they have a wand," he added reassuringly.

Xander's brows furrowed in confusion. "They can't?"

"Nope!" answered Willow with excitement. "Only witches and wizards who have that inner magical core thing can do wand magic, which means we are safe from Dawnie doing a love spell to steal my R.J.!"

"Wait, wait, wait," Xander interrupted as he held his hands up. "I just want us to be prepared. After all, Dawn does have a unique background. Sirius, can we be sure she's a, as you say it, a Muggle?"

He shrugged, and then winced at the sudden pain at his temple. "Sure. Dawn's sixteen. If she had a drop of magical blood in her, someone from the American Department of Magical Affairs or the local magical academy would have contacted her around her eleventh birthday."

"Thank god," Xander sighed in relief. "Otherwise, we'd really be screwed."

"Uh, if the Lil'Bit can't do magic, then how the hell do you lot explain the gaping hole in the wall and the two by four and stuffing you call a couch? I doubt that your wizard friend here decided to blow up your house just for giggles," stated Spike in a 'you lot are bloody idiots' tone.

Sirius spun and looked behind him, wincing at the sight. "How did-? He asked in an amazed tone.

"Well technically Dawnie is only two years old," Buffy added matter-of-factly.

"What?" boomed Sirius. "How can she-"

"Because a bunch of robed monks formed the Niblet out of a mystical energy known as the Key and they put the essence of the Key into human form and sent it to Buffy, changing everyone's memories along the way that the tyke had always been Buffy's little sis," added Spike in a bored tone.

"Oh," said a bewildered Sirius.

"Oh, shit," Xander added in an exasperated tone as he realized the loophole. "Okay, Will, do a spell to find Dawn and we'll fix this."

"Yeah! I'll do a spell and stop her from stealing my man!" Willow stated with conviction.

"You mean _my_ man!" countered Buffy.

"Both of you birds shut up, and just do the spell. Gods, you're making my head hurt," Spike said bitterly.

And for once Sirius agreed with the annoying vampire.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Xander, Sirius, Spike, Willow, and Buffy piled out of the vehicle and began looking around the alley behind the Bronze for Dawn – the destination that Willow's location spell had led them to. Hearing shouting, they knew they were close and quickly they stumbled upon several teenagers.

R.J., wearing his infamous jacket, looked on in shock as Dawn and brunette girl argued over him.

"Get over it, Summers! R.J. is mine!" the brunette screeched.

"Oh yeah? When pigs fly!" Dawn shouted back as she waved Sirius' wand at the girl.

Suddenly the girl floated up into the air and the bones in her body began shifting. Her limbs shortened to stubby pieces of flesh, her nose popped into a pig's snout, and her torso compacted and expanded – forcing her clothing to rip open- and a curly tail popped out of her backside.

A nervous "Oink!" sounded through the air as all too quickly the teenage girl was replaced by a large pig.

"Dawn!" Sirius shouted as he ran forward to get his wand.

"R.J.!" exclaimed Buffy and Willow frantically like they were rabid fans at a boy band concert.

Xander and Spike looked at each other and nodded, knowing their plan. They rushed towards R.J.

"Dawn, give it to me," grunted Sirius as he yanked his wand away from her. He cast a body-bind charm on Dawn and looked up to see the pig flying away from them.

"_Locomotor_ pig!" he shouted and brought the pig closer to him. Seeing Willow and Buffy rushing to help R.J. from Xander and Spike's attack, he cast two more body-bind charms.

"_Finite __Incantatem_!" he flicked his wand at the pig and with a flash the teenage girl was back, looking extremely freaked out.

"Oh my god, what did that freak do to me?" she gasped.

Sirius rolled his eyes and cast the 'Obliviate' charm on her before setting her into a deep sleep. There, now she would forget what Dawn had done and wouldn't wake up until they vacated the area.

Looking up, he saw Spike snatch a flask from his jacket and shake its contents onto the jacket laying on the ground.

"Where'd R.J. go?" Sirius asked.

Xander snickered. "Spike did the vamp face and told the guy if he ever repeated anything he saw tonight or ever took advantage of another female, then he was going to eat him and use his dead body as an ashtray in his crypt."

Laughing appreciatively, Sirius nodded at Spike in approval. "Excellent threat."

Spike snorted and lit the jacket on fire with his lighter. "Boy was so scared I wouldn't be surprised if the little bugger swore off females entirely and swung the opposite way now."

Glancing at Sirius out of the corner of his eye Spike commented evenly. "Though I guess he wouldn't be the first to make a switch tonight, after Red's little revelation," he smirked.

With a grin, Sirius chuckled. "I guess not."

~*~*~*~*~*~

Willow was pacing back and forth in her room, still feeling beyond embarrassed for her actions today. Sure, she had been under a love spell but did she really need to say all that to Sirius? She knew she must have hurt him – after all she had freaking thanked him for ungaying her so she and R.J. could be together. And then she had invited him to her future wedding!

Oh, not to mention she had oh-so subtly announced her changed sexuality and told Sirius that she had 'once harbored feelings for him'!

This was not of the good. She had to talk to him; to clear the air.

Breathing in deeply, she forced herself to calm down. She had to be brave. Carpe diem time.

She opened the door and it was like fate was telling her tonight was the night, because Sirius had just walked up the stairs and looked at her in surprise.

"Oh, hello Willow," he smiled.

"Hi Sirius," she smiled back, but her body was a bundle of nerves. "Um, you wanna come in and talk for a moment?"

His eyes widened and if she didn't know better she would say that Sirius Black looked a bit nervous. "Sure."

He followed her into her bedroom and she shut the door. Sitting down next to him, she gave him a nervous smile.

"Sirius-"

"Willow-"

They laughed nervously and he gestured for her to continue. Of course, Willow didn't really want to go first but she supposed she should.

"Okay, well unlike some of the spells we've encountered I still remember everything I did – which means I remember everything I said to you." Willow felt her cheeks heat up and was perturbed that she couldn't discern Sirius' expression.

"There are some things I need to tell you." Sirius nodded and she continued. "You know that somebody I loved was murdered in the spring. That person was," Willow paused. Goddess, she hated using the past tense when it came to Tara. It made her feel so sad. "-Was Tara."

Willow's eyes strayed to the spot on her floor were Tara fell and refrained from going to that dark place again.

Her eyes caught his and she continued. "When I was in high school I was attracted to boys, like Xander, and then I dated Oz."

"Xander?" he asked in a surprised tone.

"Yes," she rolled her eyes, noticing what he had decided to focus on. "But nothing really happened with him. Anyways, when Oz left me I met Tara. And she was… Special." Willow smiled wistfully. "We fell in love and it was then that I realized I loved women as well. Of course," she shrugged, "I got a bit confused. While I was with Tara I thought I was a lesbian and didn't really care about men anymore."

Willow noticed that Sirius gave her an encouraging look and she felt better that he wasn't freaking out about Tara. "I just never really thought about it, or stopped long enough to figure out things. But a couple weeks ago I realized I'm attracted to both women and m-men," she stuttered as she gazed at Sirius, realizing just how attracted she was to him.

"And that's because of you," she added, ducking her head down. But she decided to start some day seizing and plowed ahead. "You're kind of… Amazing. You're sweet and have the softest hair and sometimes when you smile at me it makes all sorts of tummy swarming butterflies, you love magic, you're great with my friends, and you just sort of get me." Willow stole a glance at him, feeling incredibly nervous for throwing herself out there – she felt so exposed right now.

"Willow, I," Sirius shook his head and grinned. "I don't know what to say."

Her heart lurched in her throat. He didn't know what to say – Did he not want her anymore? "Tha-That's fine, Sirius. You don't really have to say anything." Willow stood up quickly, feeling like a silly little girl and crossing her arms.

Looking at her in shock, he stood up and went to her in one long stride. "Willow, you need to let a man finish sometimes," he informed as he grabbed her hands and uncrossed her arms.

Willow's eyes widened and she mentally berated herself for getting flustered. "Of course."

"Do you have any idea how lucky I feel?" he asked and Willow found herself getting lost in his warm eyes. All she could do was shake her head dumbly.

"For the past thirteen years I've felt cursed. Cursed to be locked away in Azkaban and cursed to let my friends' murderer slip through my grasp. I was beginning to feel more like an animal than a man. But then somehow I ended up finding you-"

"-and stealing from me," she added with a cheeky smile.

Sirius let out a barking laugh. "Yes, and stealing from you." Then his expression sobered and he gazed at her intently. "That was the best day of my life, meeting you. You've changed me, shined light into the dark, depressed world I was living in. I care about you, Willow. More than I should probably admit at this point."

Willow's heart began pounding as he twined his arm around her waist to pull her flush against him.

"Do you remember that night in the Forbidden Forest?" he asked huskily, and a tingle ran through her body.

"How could I forget?" she asked breathlessly, a part of her unable to believe this was happening. Here. Now. Finally.

He leaned in closer and she wet her lips in anticipation. One hand curled around the back of his neck, finding pleasure in the feel of his soft waves. Her other hand held onto his bicep, silently thanking Buffy for showing Sirius how she trained; extremely pleased that he knew the best way to become a great wand dualist was to be in great physical condition.

Sirius smirked. "If I kiss you, will you throw me down like last time?"

A giggle escaped her throat. "And if I say yes?" she teased.

A dark, hungry look came into his eyes. "I really wouldn't give a damn," he responded gruffly.

His lips captured hers in a sweet, gentle kiss – so much different from their first kiss. It sent warm tingles through her and her body melted into him. Willow sighed in contentment as his tongue gently parted her lips and massaged hers. The feel of him inside of her made her frantic for more and she twined her fingers through his hair, gently pulling it in ecstasy. Willow squealed as he cupped her bottom to push her upwards – Sirius was much taller than anyone else she had been with – and her legs wrapped around his waist as she hungrily continued their kiss.

Soon she felt herself deposited on the bed as Sirius lay above her, propping himself up with both hands on either side of her. His lips left hers and she groaned as they found her neck. He traveled over her neck and exposed neckline, sucking and nibbling along the way. Willow whimpered as he sucked on a particularly sensitive spot and her back arched in response. Sirius groaned as she shifted below him and her thigh brushed against the tightening bulge in his pants. He attacked her lips with newfound enthusiasm and ran his hands from her face to the curve of her waist.

Pushing him over, she straddled his waist and leaned forward. Willow teased him by running her tongue slowly over the curve of his ear before taking the lobe between her teeth and slowly sucking on it.

"Ahh, Willow," Sirius gasped and his hips involuntarily bucked up towards her. She allowed her hands to explore his body as she ran her nails over his shoulders and down towards his chest, just stopping at the edge of his jeans.

His hands clasped her shoulders as he brought her down for another long, deep kiss. As the kiss broke, their eyes connected and they lay there taking shallow breaths.

"Willow, I want you," he murmured, his breath hot against her skin. "So much."

Fingers traced patterns on her skin and it felt like his touch left flames in its wake. She bent down to kiss him again, licking his lips with her tongue as they finished.

"I want you too, Sirius," she whispered, trying not to get lost in his fathomless eyes. A part of her wanted to pull a full on 'carpe diem' but something was holding her back. "But I think we should take it slow. I don't think I'm ready for much more – not yet."

Sirius looked crestfallen at her statement before he washed it off his face and nodded in understanding. He sat up, but kept her in his lap with his arms around her. "I understand. You've been through a lot."

Willow nodded, relieved with his reaction. "But I want to. And someday I'll be ready." She smiled slowly. "But until then I think I will have to demand lots and lots of smoochies."

Placing his hand behind her head, he pulled her down to him for another wet, hot, shiver-inducing kiss. "I think I can oblige with that part," he responded with a wink and a wolfish grin.

Grabbing him into a tight embrace, she nestled her face against his neck, feeling suddenly very content. She wished she was – Goddess did her hormones wish she was – ready for more, but a part of her heart knew she wasn't prepared to go further. Willow knew she felt strongly for Sirius, but there was a part of her that still mourned Tara – she just didn't think she could engage in any clothes-off fun just yet.

But for now, she was extremely happy with what she did have.

* * *

A/N:

Hopefully the Willow/Sirius smoochies meets your approval! I have to admit, I don't often write those types of scenes and could always use more practice so I hope it sounded good to you :)

And yep – Dawn's a witch ;)

Re: Willow's spell- *Obviously* she doesn't care anymore if he's a guy or girl since she's bi-sexual (or 'Sirius-sexual' lol), so instead she was going to turn all the other girls into _equine_ aka horses. Hahaha – Hey, it rhymed with 'mine' ;)

Coming up soonish—Shovel Speeches ;) mwahahahaha! If you have any particularly good threats, feel free to suggest them – I always enjoy feedback :)

Thanks for reading!


	34. Menslengua Demons & Alphabet Eyes

**Chapter 34:**

**A/N:**

Conversations on the Forum (.?topic=5587.0), and in particular a post from EllessarNett, inspired a note I wanted to make about Giles' England departure, just to fix a peeve I had with the series.

As always, I humbly appreciate and adore all you mighty fine reviewers there. Thank you!!!!!!!!

(lol especially borgrabbit for numerous rhyming reviews and giving me an opportunity to do rhyming responses! Almost makes me think it would be funny to have an accidental spell/or demon make all the Scoobies speak in rhymes/poetry for one day. Not gonna lie, I am seriously considering that…Too crazy? ;)

* * *

It was mid-October and the Giles shivered underneath his umbrella as he followed Amelia and Minerva to the Hogwarts gate. It had been a month and a half since he had been on these grounds so he still couldn't help but gape at the exquisite architecture. The castle was truly a sight to behold and it had a peaceful feel to it at the moment. Of course, that bit of peace was likely due to the lack of students who were spending this Saturday in Hogsmeade.

"Do hurry," Minerva informed them as she glanced over her shoulder. With a pointed finger she said, "The staircase is just about to shift and I don't fancy waiting for it."

Giles smiled in an almost giddy fashion. He loved exploring and learning about new worlds, and as of late the Wizarding World had been his favorite discovery. Their absolute nonchalance regarding the presence of outlandish magic in their lives was truly astounding. Quite frankly, Giles was surprised he had not heard about them before – especially since the head of the Watchers' Council and upper-echelon Ministry of Magic members knew of each other.

Although, of course, that probably had something to do with the fact that that idiot Quentin Travers had never liked him and had cut him out of the Council four years ago. Never mind that Giles had been allowed back into the fold – thanks to his dear Slayer's impressive use of threats – but he was still an outsider. Even though Giles had returned to his London flat, he rarely interacted with his peers at the Council. He found the lot to be a bunch of insufferable, archaic fools – and for Giles to believe someone was archaic then that was truly saying something.

However, he did have a few Watchers he still considered friends – like Robson and his wife Vanessa – so at least his recent relocation had not been all bad. Considering that the main reason for moving had been to care for his ill mother, much of his time since moving here had not been particularly happy. With her recent death last month, Giles had begun to consider moving back to Sunnydale. A part of him felt terribly guilty for leaving Buffy – especially after the traumatic events of this past year – and he felt perhaps he should explain to her his true reasons for leaving, in order to assuage his guilt.

Then again, Rupert Giles was English after all, and the English rarely express themselves so easily when it comes to things that matter. Buffy and the others were akin to his children and it would not do for him as their father figure to give them yet another burden to worry about.

His thoughts were interrupted as Minerva opened the door to a small room that hosted a round table and five high-backed mahogany chairs. Albus Dumbledore, clad in bright purple robes, was listening to a black-haired, pale-skinned fellow speaking animatedly.

Dumbledore looked up at them and smiled. "Ah! Minerva, you have brought our guests. Welcome Amelia and Rupert."

The other man scowled, clearly annoyed that his tirade had ended too early.

Pretending not to notice, Dumbledore gestured towards his companion. "This is Severus Snape, our Potions Master and Professor here at Hogwarts. Severus, I believe you may have met Minerva's sister Amelia before. And this is Rupert Giles, Watcher to the current Vampire Slayer and member of the Watcher's Council."

"Pleasure to meet you, Severus," Giles said amiably as he sat down next across from Severus and extended a hand.

"Likewise," Severus replied coolly as he shook Giles' hand.

"I would like to begin by thanking you all for coming today. There is important business to discuss that would be best to do so in person." Dumbledore clapped his hands. "Now, as you well know, the Ministry of Magic has taken a great deal of backlash for allowing Ms. Rosenberg to escape last month and many parties are crying out for a manhunt of sorts."

Severus snorted and raised a brow. "As they should, in all honesty. That woman has a great deal of dark power and obviously has shown that she cannot handle it. It would be ignorant to pretend that she isn't a ticking time bomb."

His jaw clenched as Giles shot a glare towards the Potions Master. "As you well know, from Dumbledore explaining it to you, Willow Rosenberg is clearly capable of making a full recovery. What that nasty intolerable fool Fudge did was completely idiotic – sending the Aurors after Willow like that. You heard the reports – they attacked first. What sort of person allows themselves to be captured like that by fool magical Bobbies that submit people to a bloody jail ran by demons?"

Severus' eyes widened at the fervent contradiction and he sneered. "An innocent one, of course. That foolish girl could have avoided this mess but instead she allowed her emotions to control her and brought this upon herself."

"Severus Snape!" Amelia admonished hotly. "You of all people know the dangers of a dark magic addiction and are in no spot to cast stones."

Severus' face immediately locked down as he wiped away all signs of outer emotion, but Giles noticed his fingers clenched above the desk.

"I have spoken to Willow many times over the telephone – as has Giles – and we have discussed the incident and her continual rehabilitation. She understands the grave mistake she made and is continuing with her meditation – in fact she even has a support system in her new wizard friend and I have been told they practice together on controlling her magic. All in all, I have a great amount of confidence that she will make us proud," Amelia informed with a haughty look in Severus' direction.

"Yes, I have to say, while I was at first shocked by the revelation you gave us last month, Albus, regarding his innocence, I believe it will be helpful for Willow to have Sirius Black around. As a student and Order member I remember him being an extremely gifted wizard," Minerva added.

Giles fought to hide a smirk, because he believed he saw Severus roll his eyes at Minerva's words. Interesting – the researcher in him couldn't help but wonder at the reason behind such a reaction.

"And since we are the only ones to know the truth about Willow – and Sirius – it is important that I inform you on the latest piece of news from the Ministry," Albus began gravely. "Cornelius Fudge has just authorized several Unspeakables to enter America and attempt to take Ms. Rosenberg by force."

"What?" Giles practically shouted, unnerved by that new bit of information. "Who are these people and why on earth does this Fudge man think he can do such a thing?"

"Albus, this is too much," Minerva said in a disbelieving tone. "Surely the American Department of Magical Affairs would not allow Unspeakables into their territory to claim Willow?"

Holding up a hand for silence, Dumbledore answered Giles' question first. "Unspeakables are Ministry positions shrouded in mystery but they hold many roles, from researcher to spy. Those positions have the authority to enter other countries for espionage work, although seldom is that needed anymore."

"And yes Minerva, you are correct. That is why Fudge is sending the Unspeakables discreetly. Their cover is to go after Sirius Black, who is within their jurisdiction – even though I am sure the isolationist policies of the American Department of Magical Affairs would not allow such a thing. They believe that since Sirius and Willow are working together, Willow will stop them from taking Sirius. In doing so, they hope she will strike first – thus legally allowing them to take her into custody."

"Those bastards," Giles swore under his breath.

"I cannot believe Fudge would be so rash. If the Americans hear this, there will be hell to pay," Amelia grumbled as she shook her head. "Ever since the war with Voldemort, relations have been tight between the two governments."

"True," Dumbledore sighed. "But I doubt Fudge worries about the American Secretary, Katherine Asp, very much when he has Lucius Malfoy whispering in his ear. It seems that Lucius is to blame for much of the controversy."

"What on earth would Lucius Malfoy want with Willow?" asked Minerva.

"And that is where Severus comes in," Dumbledore stated with a nod in Severus' direction.

"As Dumbledore has previously informed you," he said to Giles, "During the war against Voldemort I acted as a Double Agent for the Order of the Phoenix. I have kept up the charade since then, knowing that someday the Dark Lord will return. In doing so, I have kept up appearances and am friendly with the Malfoy family. Since the appearance of Ms. Rosenberg in our world, Lucius has been asking around about her. Once he has personally approached me for information and I know of several instances where he has asked others about her – as well as your vampire slayer."

Giles peered across the rim of his glasses at Severus. "Indeed?" he asked, feeling slightly alarmed. It was never a surprise to hear that yet another agent of the forces of darkness was after his slayer, but damned it all to hell that it didn't make him nauseous every time he learned of a new enemy. He simply could not lose Buffy again. "What sort of information is this Malfoy fellow after and what exactly does he intend to do?"

"He has been asking about Ms. Rosenberg's powers and gathering background information. That includes information on her friends and I think Lucius is intrigued by the idea of the vampire slayer and their lives on the Hellmouth. As to what he hopes to accomplish, I cannot be sure. However, if I know Lucius there is only one thing that holds interest to him – and that is gaining power."

"You think he hopes to capture Willow for his own use?" asked Minerva.

Severus nodded with a grimace on his lips. "Yes, that is the only conclusion I can come to if he is encouraging Fudge to capture her. I understand you all say that the woman can contain her powers and won't fall sway to the darkness again, but I guarantee you that Lucius Malfoy is an incredibly charismatic individual and if anyone could corrupt her, he could."

"Essentially, I am afraid that Lucius is looking for a new Dark Lord to give him power, now that Voldemort is – to the assumption of many – gone. It appears he thinks Ms. Rosenberg can give him that," Dumbledore surmised.

"In addition, as I mentioned to you, Rupert, in my owl post, Sirius and your charges have asked about the latest bout of demonic activity at the Hellmouth. I am afraid I have no information to assist them with, but it will not be good for them to be attacked by Unspeakables or the plots of Lucius Malfoy while dealing with that."

"Indeed," Giles stated.

"Well, we must warn Willow about all this," Amelia stated decisively.

"Too true, Amelia my dear. But owl posts out of Britain to America are being closely observed – especially anything towards the West Coast. We must be careful on how we proceed, lest our plots to protect them get discovered. However, I believe I have a solution," he said with a smile and twinkling

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat around a table at the Three Broomsticks laughing about the latest prank that the Weasley Twins had pulled. It was early evening and after a long day spent at the shops, they were enjoying their butterbeers and relaxation.

"I don't think I'm ever going to forget that look on Goyle's face," Ron snickered. "Bloody priceless that was."

"I think the best part was when his face got so purple he looked like an eggplant – who knew the human face could change into as many colors as a Muggle's mood ring?" Harry laughed.

As their laughter subsided Harry's eyes roved over the tavern, subtly looking for the girl he couldn't stop thinking about since the school year began.

"Who you looking for?" asked Hermione with a knowing smirk.

Harry averted his eyes and forced himself to keep a straight face. "No one," he lied. "Just looking around."

"Blimey, are you sure you weren't looking at _that_ girl?" Ron asked between choking laughter. He was pointing towards a girl their age whose hair was so blond it was almost white – but wasn't as straight and slicked as Malfoys, but instead hung in soft waves around her face. She had a peculiar look, with large blue eyes that seemed to be attempting to look at everything at once and she moved with an unnatural grace.

Even stranger, she wore earrings made of raven's feathers, a large box hat with a snapping flower growing out of it, and was holding a large newspaper in one hand and a butterbeer in the other.

"Oh, that's just Luna Lovegood, Ravenclaw. Everyone calls her Looney though – not to her face, of course," Hermione added quickly. "She seems quite nice but has a reputation for being somewhat of an oddball."

As Luna teetered on her feet to keep her drink from spilling while she looked for a spot to sit, the fifth year Slytherin Quidditch Chaser, _Montague_, bumped into her. Most of the drink spilled on Luna but some of it caught the Slytherin as well.

"Watch it, Looney," the _Montague_ snarled. "What do you think you're doing, spilling something on me?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said politely. "It must have been the snifflegarblers following me. They are known to incite clumsiness in humans."

_Montague_'s eyes widened at her bizarre statement. "You really are nutters, aren't you? My grandmum likes to read that rubbish Quibbler your father produces, although I don't know why anyone would want to read that garbage," he sneered.

"Leave her alone," Harry ordered as he stood up, holding his wand menacingly towards the fifth year. "You bloody well know it was your fault for running into her, so stop bothering her."

Next to him Hermione sighed and muttered something that sounded like, "Here we go again," under her breath. Across from him, Ron stood up as well holding his wand to immediately be ready to back up Harry.

The fifth year boy approached, a look of evil delight on his features. "Oh no, is the little Boy Who Lived threatening me? I'm sh-sh-shaking in my shoes," he stuttered and laughed in Harry's face.

"_Montague_! That's enough of that. Get back to 'yer seat and leave Mr. Potter and Ms. Lovegood alone," growled the voice of Mad-Eye Moody as he stalked into view, his wooden leg loudly smacking the floor.

_Montague_ sneered at Harry threateningly but he followed Moody's orders. Across the room, Harry smiled when Moody winked at him.

Harry and Ron sat down again and were surprised when Luna approached them.

"You didn't have to do that," Luna said softly, an empty glass dangling from her hand. "It's quite alright, I'm rather used to it."

"Well, I just hate to see those Slytherins push people around," Harry told her, feeling a bit embarrassed at her acknowledging his help – Harry didn't _try_ to get into these 'Hero' type situations but he really couldn't help it.

"Luna, do you want to sit with us? I'm a bit full and not up to drinking this butterbeer I just bought," Hermione said with an inviting smile – not realizing that Ron was looking at her as if she were wearing an outfit crazier than Luna's.

"Oh, alright," Luna said simply in a soft, pleasant voice as she sidled into the booth next to Ron.

"I'm Hermione, this here is Ron, and this is Harry," introduced Hermione.

Luna smiled. "Oh yes, I've seen you all around. It's nice to meet you."

Ron, eyes drawn to the front page of the newspaper Luna was carrying, squawked, "What is that?"

"This?" Luna asked calmly as she looked at the front page. Featured on the front was a bold headline stating '_Menslengua Demons Seen in Canterbury_!' followed by a picture of two slick, revolting looking demons that noticeably lacked a mouth.

"Yeah," Ron added with a nod of his head. "What are they talking about, saying there are demons being seen?"

"Oh Ron," Hermione sighed with a roll of her eyes. "That's the Quibbler and it's not a paper that specializes in fact finding."

"My father is the editor," Luna stated matter-of-factly.

Hermione squeaked. "Er, well, um, that's just something I heard, um, sorry Luna."

With a shrug, Luna brushed off Hermione's comments. "It's alright, Hermione. Many people have a hard time understanding the greater magical world."

"So, er," began Harry to get over the awkward Hermione moment. "You mean there are demons in the world? Like those things?"

"Oh, yes," Luna nodded sagely. "I've heard we don't learn about them at Hogwarts until our sixth year of Defense Against the Dark Arts, but they exist. These demons in particular," she pointed to the cover, "are very interesting. They mate for life and are telepathic."

"Bollocks, you mean they can move things with their mind?" asked Ron in an astonished voice.

"No, Ron, you are thinking of the word 'telekinetic'," Hermione sighed with a shake of their head. "Telepathic means they can read minds."

"Really?" asked Harry in surprise. "That would make it hard to run away from them if they attacked you."

"Oh, no, that isn't a problem. The _Menslengua _are a very polite species and don't instigate violence. My father says that his second cousin thrice removed actually was friends with a couple of them and they blessed her by sharing their blood and giving her the gift of telepathy."

Hermione's nose crinkled in disbelief. "You mean, she drank some of their blood?"

"Rubbish," snorted Ron. "That sounds insane."

Luna shrugged and smiled. "I'm not quite sure how it happened, but it did."

The four of them conversed for a while longer and Harry found Luna Lovegood to be rather alright. She was certainly a bit off, but rather sweet. Even if the stories she told them were rubbish, at least she was entertaining.

A good while later, the four of them began the walk back to the castle. Harry was tempted to light his wand, because the dense cloud cover and sunset were covering the area in darkness. As they walked Harry thought about his godfather. So far he had received only one post from him – apparently wherever Sirius was it was quite a distance away and required an extended traveling time. Harry was happy that Sirius was safe, and so was Willow. but he wished the stupid Ministry of Magic people would just leave them alone so Sirius could be here in England. He missed him.

"What's that?" Hermione asked in a low voice as she halted, causing Ron to run into her.

"Jeez, Hermione, you can't just stop in the middle of the path like that!"

"Shh, Ron! Listen. Do you guys hear anything?" she asked in a cautious tone.

Harry eyed the surrounding trees with a sense of foreboding and grasped his wand.

"Could be snoozum monkeys. They like to hide in trees and scare travelers. Do any of you have an avocado? They enjoy those," Luna offered, and Harry just rolled his eyes.

After a moment of silence, the four of them heard nothing more and continued walking. However, each of them held onto their wands, just in case.

Then Harry heard a rustle to the side of him and he was knocked to the ground. "Hey!" he shouted at the dark-robed figure. Whoever had pushed him down grabbed onto Luna's one arm while another figure grabbed her other arm. Silver glinted in the darkness as Harry saw one of them lunge a knife towards Luna's unprotected belly.

"_Petrificus Totalus_!" Hermione yelled with gusto at the knife-carrying attacker. Following a flash of light, the person fell to the ground.

Harry lunged forwards and pushed the other attacker away from Luna, who then slashed a similar curved blade towards him. Jumping backwards, he narrowly escaped the sharp blade.

"_Essum Tardus_!" called Ron as he blasted the other figure with a curse.

Immediately the person groaned, fell to their knees and began throwing up slugs.

"What in the- Are these Death Eaters?" Hermione asked as she approached them and took both of their knives.

"You alright, Luna?" Harry asked.

She nodded, but he could see her trembling. "F-fine," she answered. "I've never seen those before," she said in a surprised tone.

Ron put the slug-puking person in a body-bind as well and turned to Harry with a disgusted face. "Did you see these guys? They have alphabet eyes!"

"What?" exclaimed Harry. Sure enough runes were carved over their eyes. "Well, I 'spose they aren't Death Eaters, otherwise they'd have a mask on."

"Then who are they?" asked Hermione.

Harry glanced at Luna. "More importantly, why do they want to kill Luna?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The heavy oak door opened with an extended creek as it scraped across the stone floor. "Professor?" called Harry. As the door opened further he saw Dumbledore, Snape, and McGonagall sitting at a table, along with two other people who looked familiar. Wait a moment; they looked to be the people who were in Dumbledore's office the night of Sirius' and Willow's escape. Harry wondered why they would be at Hogwarts again.

"Yes, Harry?" asked Dumbledore.

"Sir, there's been an attack." All five adults' spines went rigid at his statement.

"But no one was injured," he added quickly. "Luna, Ron, Hermione, and I were attacked by two men, who are now locked in a body-bind curse and being watched by Professor Moody."

Sliding from his seat, a sharp glint of cold fury entered Dumbledore's eyes, and once again Harry was reminded of how powerful his headmaster was. "What happened?"

"It was strange, Sir. The two of them – weird looking blokes wearing robes and alphabet eyes – just knocked Ron and I down and went straight for Luna. They both had knives and were going to stab her, but Hermione and Ron cursed them. It was weird how they went straight for her." Harry gave a small smile. "I supposed I'm used to being the one people are trying to murder."

Dumbledore chuckled. "Indeed. I am glad to hear that Ms. Lovegood is safe. Since we were just wrapping up, I will go down to interrogate these men."

"Actually sir, I don't know if you'll have much luck with that. They can't speak – it seems their tongues have been ripped out."

The older gentleman, whose name Harry did not know, jerked his head up and stared at Harry. "Excuse me; did you just say that their tongues have been ripped out? And they have 'alphabet eyes'?" He pulled off his glasses and began cleaning them with the edge of his shirt.

"Yes, sir," Harry answered.

"Rupert?" inquired Dumbledore.

"I'm afraid we may have a problem," Rupert informed with a sigh.

* * *

A/N:

Ah, yes, now we have the two worlds further twisting together ;) *claps hands eagerly*

Ah, and sad news… Not sure when the next update is going to be. Just took my car to the shop on account of it shaking whenever I was idling – cause, yeah, shaky cars are not of the good – and turns out my car is living on borrowed time. Very borrowed time, due to something about an 'internal engine blow-by gas' thing. Hence, I need to find a new car asap, this week preferably so I can drive to my work. Eeeep. I'm a saaaaaad panda. But don't worry, I probably won't stay away for long – we're finally getting to parts of the story that I've been planning for a while now and I am quite excited to get there ;D

_Menslengua- _I have noidea if those demons from that S3 'Earshot' episode had a name – I am sure they did but couldn't find it on any site – so I named them this. Mens- Latin for 'mind' and 'Lengua' is Latin for speech. Anyone else thinks that Luna would love the Hellmouth where she would find people who believe her in her weirdness? ;)

_Essum Tardus-_ There is a slug-burping spell but the incantaion wasn't listed on HP Lexicon so I made this up. I *think* it's Latin for 'eat slugs', but don't quote me on that.


	35. Sad Puppy Face

**Chapter 35:****Sad Puppy Face**

A/N:

WOW, can I just say *THANK YOU* to all you WONDERFUL reviewers? All the reviews and some de-stressing I needed to do resulted in another chapter :)

Honestly, it kind of blows my mind how many people like this story. And to think, this began because of a crazed plot bunny and was only going to last 5 chapters of fluffy romantic fun in Willow's cabin – but because of awesome reviewers and my Muse going crazy, its become so much more. Thanks for sticking along for the ride, Dear Readers!

And crazy mad thanks to a href="." DofEire /a for issuing a rec ~ 'Tis appreciated!

* * *

"Breathe out slowly," Willow instructed, her soft voice barely carrying over the wind.

"Now your magic may be different than mine, but it's still something that is a part of you. Continue taking deep breaths and imagine a pulsing fixture of light behind your eyes. So often we allow our eyes to see for us that we fail to actually _see_ the true world and ourselves."

Willow smiled at Sirius, whose dark locks blew lightly against his face as he sat in quiet silence listening to her. Since their arrival into Sunnydale six weeks ago Sirius had been a big part of her recovery program by helping keep her anchored in practicing her control, and now she wanted to return the favor. She found it odd that wizards did not seem to be very in tune to their magic – they just seemed to take it for granted that it was a part of them, and always would be. But Willow had a feeling that her methods would be beneficial to Sirius, or any wizard for that matter.

At the very least, she always enjoyed playing teacher – especially when it meant allowing herself to stare shamelessly at Sirius without him knowing.

"Now that you have caught hold of that pulsing light, I want you to grab on to it. Imagine it is like catching hold of a sailboat as you begin to drift within your body. You are extremely relaxed now and it's almost as if you are enjoying a summer day at the beach. But for it to be summer, you need to find the sun; the heat that burns within you – your magical core. Can you feel it?"

Forehead scrunching in concentration, he made a noise of frustration. "I can't feel anything Willow. It's like an empty void in there." His eyes snapped open. "Maybe this just doesn't work for wizards."

"Hey now, we've only tried this a few times. It's not like meditation is a drive-thru window where you can order your Happy Meal of Self-Realization and burn rubber outta there, mister," Willow chastised with a frown.

"You're so cute when you get mad," he grinned as he leaned forward and gave her a soft kiss.

"Mmm," Willow sighed in appreciation at the feel of his lips and she giggled at the tickling of his moustache against her face. Then her eyes narrowed in annoyance at the realization of his ploy.

"Mr. Black, are you trying to seduce me in order to get out of mediation?" she inquired archly.

Laying butterfly kisses up the side of her neck he responded, "Always, Ms. Rosenberg."

Willow smiled and then playfully smacked his shoulder. "It's not going to be that easy, Mr. Black. We are going to try this again."

He threw his head back and groaned. "Willow, come on now. This is kind of boring. Let's do something fun. Maybe a ride on Buckbeak?"

Hmm, Willow was a bit tempted to do that. They had been refraining in fear of someone from the Wizarding World would see them seeing Buckbeak, Sirius, or her – especially since Giles' phone call last week warning them about those Unspeakable people. Although, Sirius promised he knew several excellent concealing charms…

But… That could wait.

Willow pointed to her face. "Do you recognize this face, Sirius?"

He shot her a chagrined look. "Uh-oh. That looks like the same face you gave when you stopped Xander and I from charming Buffy's shoes to do one of those old Muggle dances – the hokey-pokey."

Allowing herself a small smile, she nodded. "That's right. Resolve Face here. So we are getting this done, buster."

Sirius sighed, but obliged her demand by resuming position. He had a lot of energy and she knew sitting and concentrating all day was not one of his strong points.

Willow coaxed him back through the beginning steps of the meditation process until they reached the point where they had left off.

"This time, don't search for the sun, let it find you. Imagine yourself floating throughout your body, what do you feel?"

"I feel… A bit stupid actually." He opened his eyes and lifted his lips into a sheepish smile.

"Ugh," Willow moaned in frustration as she got to her feet and folded her arms. Shooting Sirius a steely gaze she spoke flatly, "Fine then. We don't have to do anymore, quote, _stupid_ mediation." She whirled past him, her body tense with irritation.

Sirius sighed heavily. "Willow, wait!"

She could hear him following her, but with a wave of her hand the door slammed and locked behind her. Let him '_Alohomora'_ his way back into the house; gosh darn it, because Willow needed a break.

They had been friends for six weeks and dating for two, and Willow _did _like him. A lot.

But.

Sirius Black really could be the most frustrating individual sometimes. He severely lacked patience and he could be so darn head-strong sometimes. Willow knew it was partly because he was sick of being confined to the house and yard. They had finally, last week, thought that maybe it was safe here for him but then Giles had told them about the stupid Ministry of Magic. So now Sirius was getting irritated about being stuck here all the time and being absolutely impossible.

Willow sighed. Alright, perhaps he was not impossible – that may be too harsh. She was so just so annoyed with him right now – but why? Sure, okay, he didn't like meditation but was that so bad?

Plopping down on her bed, Willow clenched her eyes shut and allowed herself a moment of clarity. She was being unfair. Yes, Sirius could be a bit more patient but they had tried half a dozen times already – no wonder he was frustrated.

In truth, she knew that a part of her was trying to make him like Tara.

Willow winced. There, she said it – er, thought it anyways.

Tara was her partner in more than just smoochies – she was her magical counterpart. Tara and she spent a lot of time doing spells together, meditating, or channeling each other's energy. Willow missed that. While she and Sirius could talk about magic and share that knowledge and feelings with each other, they couldn't _experience_ it together. His magic was just so different from hers. It really shouldn't matter, but it did. And it was why she was really pushing him to learn with her.

An insistent barking broke into her thoughts and she got up to peer out the window. Somehow a large, black dog was running back and forth in front of the back door. Weird.

Pushing her thoughts aside for now, she jogged down the stairs to check on the dog – or at least get it to stop barking. Maybe they had some leftovers in the fridge…?

Opening the door cautiously, Willow called out to the dog. "Hey there fella, whatcha barking for?"

He grinned at her – as much as a dog could, she guessed – and trotted into the house.

"Hey!" she said disapprovingly. "What on earth do you think you're doing?" Her brows furrowed as she tried to figure out how to get rid of the stray without hurting him.

The dog lay down in front of her, whining softly, and covered his nose with his paws.

Willow couldn't help it; she laughed at the creature and bent down to pet it. "Aw, look at you, you big crybaby. Don't like getting yelled at, do you?"

The dog shook his head – which was kind of odd behavior for a dog. Willow glanced around. "Sirius?" Where had he gone?

Pushing his nose into her palm, the dog begged for more attention. Giggling lightly, she obliged the beast and then it began to lick her cheek.

"Ew, slobber." She made a face at the dog, who barked happily. "You wouldn't happen to know where Sirius is, would you? Or did you eat him outside? Not that I would blame you."

Again, the dog lay in front of her and whined softly, pawing its face.

Willow rolled her eyes. "I'm just joking. If you ate him – which is possible since this is the Hellmouth – I would have to eviscerate you. And that would not be pretty," she warned sternly.

Barking once more, the dog sat up. And… Up?

Willow shrieked as the dog began to grow and transform, and she jumped to her feet. "What in the name of Hecate?" she screamed, a tinge of fear evident in her voice.

Within a moment, Sirius was standing in front of her holding his hands up in surrender and smiling. "Hi," he said sheepishly. "Surprise!"

With her face frozen in shock, she gasped loudly. "What-the-HELL?" she shouted, glad that everyone else was at work or school right now. "Sirius? What in the- What?" Shooting him a confused look, she threw her hands up in the air.

"Well, everyone loves a man of mystery – I couldn't tell you all of my secrets right away, now could I?" he asked with a lopsided grin and a shrug.

"And you thought _now _would be a good time to do so?" she inquired sharply, her hand still holding her heart from her fright.

Sirius winced. "Ah, well, this was the first time we've ever had a fight and you've gotten mad at me. So, I thought 'what girl doesn't love the sad puppy face?'" he explained as he gave her a half-hearted smile.

"Sirius," she stated sternly, throwing every ounce of her disappointed teacher voice in there, and glaring at him.

That darn wizard just smiled charmingly in response.

"You do realize that while girls may love the sad puppy face, it doesn't mean that you should literally turn into a dog," she stated dryly.

"What can I say? I'm an overachiever," he said cheekily, eyes twinkling.

Marching over to him, she smacked him repeatedly on the arms and chest. "Overachiever? You scared me half to death! And what were you thinking keeping that from me! You really should tell your girlfriend important things, like your ability to turn into a sloppy, smelly dog!"

He grabbed her wrists and held them apart to cease her attack. "You're my girlfriend?" he asked with an amused smile.

Eyes widening, Willow realized that while they had been together for two weeks, they hadn't actually done the labeling process. Which was fine with her, because of all people Willow Rosenberg was not one for labels anymore. But she realized that now, with Sirius, she did kind of want a label.

"Well, aren't I?" she asked softly, staring into his light blue eyes that were coloring darker with emotion.

Sirius smiled at her, but he seemed hesitant. "Are you sure you want to tie yourself down to some old escaped convict who doesn't even have the self-discipline to do meditation?"

She broke away from his grasp and cradled his head lovingly between her hands. "Darn tootin'," she confirmed with a soft look.

His smile grew until it shone brighter than the sun on a sweltering, summer day. "Well then, my dear girlfriend, as your boyfriend I demand a kiss." He smirked as he pulled her tighter into his embrace, his strength surrounding her. Their lips met and Willow sighed as the kiss deepened.

It wasn't until sometime later that Willow realized that Sirius' trick worked – she had forgotten all about being mad at him.

* * *

A/N:

A bit of sweetness and fun, while also a deeper look at their blossoming relationship, for this chapter. In 1 or 2 chapters our dear characters are really going to be dealt some angst from a new entity – I thought they deserved this bit of lightness :)


	36. Conversations with Dead People

**Chapter 36: Conversations with Dead People**

A/N:

So good news! Life is better and I have an awesome car now so no more spending every second stressing and researching vehicles! That means y'all get an update!

Oh and B!G thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing- Crazy that this story has 50,000 hits already!

Crazy mad thanks to a href="." ivanjedi/a for issuing a rec~ 'Tis appreciated!

BTW: A couple lines from this S7 episode were taken, fyi, but no harm intended!

To set the mood for this story I played (on repeat) 'Sense of Touch' by Mark Isham that was featured in the movie 'Crash' and the 06-07 Season Finale of Law & Order SVU. So, if you can, I suggest You Tubing it (probably search 'Sense of Touch Crash') because I think it fits nicely with this chappie; not to mention it's an absolute exquisite song.

* * *

Taking a sip of her mocha, Willow returned to her book on ancient mythology. So far none of the books from their collection at home referenced anything that could possibly identify the source of 'from beneath you it devours' so Willow had decided to go out on a limb tonight. The Sunnydale University library was large and did feature an excellent history selection so Willow hoped maybe something would jump out at her in their mythology books, because even the vaguest reference would be better than anything the Scoobies were coming up with at the moment – which was nothing.

Scanning the area, Willow realized she was probably the only person left at this hour. This far back in the stacks she couldn't see anyone in the other parts of the library, but the utter quiet indicated she was, more or less, alone. It was funny – until sophomore year Willow loved libraries and spending countless hours alone relaxing with a book in them. But now, after the horror that was attending Sunnydale High with its cursed library? Not so much.

"This seat taken?" asked a soft voice in front of her.

Willow's heart lurched and for one second there was complete silence where her entire body shut down. Involuntarily her fingers clenched the edge of the page that she was reading as the familiar voice danced along her skin, leaving ripples of despair and hope in its wake.

* * *

Buffy was out patrolling, Dawn was settling in for – as she called it – a 'veg night' of movies and phone gossip, Willow was researching at the library, and Xander was back at his apartment – meaning that no one would notice if Sirius decided to take a stroll. Everyone had been so uptight about him leaving the house, especially after Giles' warning two weeks ago, and Sirius was going a bit mental being locked up.

For the most part, he didn't mind because he had his beautiful Willow to keep him occupied. If she wasn't with him he was usually giving Dawn beginner's lessons on wand magic – which usually resulted in at least an hour of clean-up time from her current inability to refrain from exploding things. Even besides those two, Sirius found himself enjoying talking demons and evil wizards with Buffy or doing 'manly' things with Xander (which usually included a couple of addicting video games). Hell, even Spike was beginning to grow on him – a bit like a fungus – but the bloodsucking bloke was pretty entertaining. Anya had not been around too much, but when she was Sirius found her matter-of-fact manner to be highly amusing.

Regardless of the wonderful people he lived with, Sirius Black was starting to feel like he was locked up again. He needed to breathe, he needed to be outside and explore. All this 'being safe and careful' rubbish was the complete opposite of his nature. He didn't fear the Unspeakables and there was no way in hell that he was going to limit his life because of them. Not now, not anymore. Sirius was free of Azkaban, had a wonderful woman at his side, and was finally starting to feel like he had a family again after thirteen years – if only Harry were here life would be perfect.

So, of course Sirius took this first opportunity of being alone to escape the house and explore Sunnydale on his own at night.

Merlin, it felt glorious outside. It was mid-October but the weather was absolutely stunning in Southern California – it was nothing like England. After an hour of walking – in human form, safety be damned! – he realized he was near the Sunnydale High School. After hearing all the stories about its wicked ways he was curious enough to check it out.

Making his way to the parking lot he whistled jauntily, not even caring if anyone heard him. In fact, a part of him _wanted_ a vampire or something else to jump out. Merlin, Sirius was craving a fight. He wasn't afraid – after all he was a wizard, and a damned good one at that. He had accompanied Buffy on a few patrols since getting here and he was amazed at how a good fire spell could dustify those vampires in a second.

Sirius frowned. _Dustify_ wasn't a real word, he realized. Oh bollocks, seven weeks here and he was starting to pick up some of strange 'Scooby' vocabulary.

He chucked under his breath at the realization and began whistling again as he strode through the parking lot.

A snort of laughter sounded in the air near him and Sirius' honed reflexes – thanks to a new workout regime created by Buffy – had his wand out in a half-second.

"Who's there?" he called out suspiciously, adrenaline coursing through his veins. A grin worked its way onto his face as he waited for a good fight.

A voice came from the shadows of the school entrance. "Honestly, Sirius, it's just like when we were back at school, seeing you strut your way around like that."

* * *

No.

No, it couldn't be.

It just wasn't possible.

How?

As these words flew through her mind, Willow took in a shaky breath as she stared with wide, confused eyes at the image in front of her. Auburn hair hung softly below the woman's shoulders, delicious pouty lips smiled at her, and glacial blue eyes froze Willow on the spot.

"Baby?" Willow breathed; unaware that she had been holding her breath.

Tara slid into the empty chair across from her and gave a sweet smile. "Hi Willow," she spoke in that soft, sensual voice that always stirred the strongest reaction in her.

Tremors began to roll through Willow's body and her eyes welled with tears. "How? How are you here?" Willow thought she was going crazy. Tara was dead and it was already told to her once that Tara could never return because she didn't die by supernatural means.

"I had to see you again."

Willow's fingers clung to the edge of the wooden table as she struggled to think coherently. "Tara," she said, her voice cracking as she stared at her former lover through blurry eyes. "Oh Goddess, Baby, I've missed you so much," she sobbed as tears rolled freely down her cheeks. She reached a hand hesitatingly across the table and felt baffled when Tara recoiled.

"Baby?" she asked in a tone laced with bewilderment and hurt.

Tara gave her a sad look that seemed to squeeze her very heart. "Touching isn't allowed, I'm afraid."

Sitting straight up in her oak chair, Willow took in shallow breaths. "But, why not? Baby, I'm so confused. How did you get here? Why can't I touch you?"

"You can't touch me because I'm not part of this physical plane anymore," she answered, her wide blue eyes filling with sorrow.

"But where are you then? How is it I can see you? Are you back?" Willow struggled to ask, when all she wanted to do was curl up in Tara's arms and have her explain that her death had been a long, distorted nightmare, and nothing more. That she was here again, to be with Willow again.

"I'm dead, Willow. Dead and gone. You know that. I am beyond this world now," she answered morosely.

"But-" Willow paused, as she tried to take everything in, but her loud racking sobs broke through any sort of logical thought. Tara was dead, truly dead. Her hopes had risen so quickly only to collapse a moment later. Her chest felt tight and it Willow was suffocating underneath those fallen hopes right now.

"I miss you, Baby. Oh, baby, you left such a big hole. It hurts so bad. Why did you have to leave? Why can't I touch you?" Willow implored passionately. A deep gasping breath rattled through her chest as she spoke between sobs.

"We can never be together in this world again, Willow. Warren's bullet saw to that," Tara explained as she gave her a sympathetic look, her eyes glistening with tears.

"Warren," Willow hissed, newfound anger coursing through her.

* * *

Something prickled at the back of Sirius' mind as he tried to identify the voice – even though a part of him already knew who the speaker was. But that would be impossible.

"Surprised to see me…Brother?"

Sirius stared in silence as the figure melted out of the darkness and stepped into the light of the night sky. The young, unlined face of eighteen was framed by short ebony hair and was highlighted by an arrogant grin. He wore black Wizarding robes that drank in the darkness of the night and around his neck lay a golden locket.

Gripping his wand tightly, Sirius took in a gasp of air at the strange sight. "Regulus?" he whispered, unable to believe his eyes.

Thick black eyebrows rose in mock surprise. "My, my. Are you telling me that my dear, devoted brother recognizes me? One would think he had forgotten me years ago when he ran away to the Potter's," he said sarcastically.

Grey eyes sharpening, Sirius inspected Regulus and walked towards him without hesitation, wand still raised. "What are you?" he asked in a voice that betrayed no emotion.

Regulus chuckled hollowly. "You know I'm dead, Sirius – been so since you were nineteen. I'm a ghost now – what did you expect?"

Still suspicious, Sirius raised a tentative hand to touch Regulus and his eyes widened in shock when he passed through Regulus' arm. It was strange how Sirius did not feel chilled by the touch, but indeed Regulus was non-corporeal like a ghost.

"How did you get here?" he asked quietly. "Ghosts have limits of travel." A part of Sirius ached to see his baby brother after so many years. It had always pained him that they never spoke again after he moved out – but then again they had each taken two separate paths in life.

"You are right to wonder – that is true that ghosts are tied to the place of their death or a place that they strongly identified with. But I've always been here, it's just the natural alignment of certain stars tonight that allow me to present myself," Regulus answered swiftly with a lopsided smile – so similar to Sirius'.

Sirius didn't have a clue as to what Regulus meant. "You've always been here, in Sunnydale? This is the place you haunt?" A smirk escaped his control at the thought of Regulus doomed to haunt high school children.

His face darkening, he spat out, "No! Merlin brother, once again you've proven that I inherited the brains of the family. No, I've always been here – with you."

"What?" he asked in bewilderment. "Why with me?"

"Because," he sneered, "I have always blamed you as my murderer and now my spirit is tied to following you."

* * *

Then Willow heard Sirius' voice in the back of her mind – _'whenever you feel the anger, take a deep breath and remember who you are.'_

Doing just that, Willow calmed her wild urges. She took another deep, shaky breath and looked again at Tara with red-rimmed eyes. "How did you get here? Is it something about the big bad that you need to warn us about?" Willow asked, trying to keep her questions in the context of logic as her heart and head struggled to understand Tara's appearance.

The barest hint of a smile graced her features before it passed, leaving only a hurt look in its wake.

"No one sent me, I came here by myself – I guess the Powers That Be thought I deserved one last moment with you."

"One last…" Willow trailed off, too pained to finish.

Tara sighed and bit her lip nervously. "W- Would that even m- matter to y- you? To have this b- be our last m- moment?" she stuttered bitterly.

The harshness of the tone was like a slap in the face as Willow gave her a stricken look. "Of course it matters! Tara, baby, I love you! I don't want this to be our last moment together!" she choked back a sob.

Blue eyes filled with tears as Tara turned her head downcast. "You know, when I saw it, I didn't believe it. You see, where I am now, people have a way of watching their loved ones. And I know that you've forgotten me, Willow – now that you have S- Sirius Black."

Tara's betrayed voice raked across her flesh like angry claws as Willow gasped in surprise. "Tara, no!" she cried out to explain, but she was interrupted by Tara furiously shaking her head.

"Willow, I gave so much for you – even after you _violated_ my _mind_. I even _died_ because of you – after all, if we had never met I never would have been in the path of that bullet. And now," Tara sighed morosely. "And now it's like you've forgotten all about me."

Rocking back and forth with her arms wrapped around herself to bring some warmth into the body that chilled at her words, Willow shook her head. "Please baby, don't say those things. I _love_ you. I'm _sorry_, you know how sorry I am about what I did to you." Sobs escaped her throat as Tara's accusations sunk in. "If I could take it all back to save you, I would. I love you, I haven't forgotten you."

Somewhere within the recesses of her mind, Willow wondered if she was a bad person for still loving Tara yet having very strong feelings for Sirius.

Tara just stared at her in silence, betrayal darkening her eyes like a frothing, angry sea.

Finally she spoke again. "After all I gave, and you kiss the first person you meet, practically. Not just any person, but a man. Was I a just a _joke_ to you?" she accused angrily. "Just your college wild sexual experience? Was I a fluke? Was I anything at all?"

"No!" Willow denied. "No, how can you say such a thing? You weren't a fluke – you were my everything, Tara! I-I don't understand why you came back to say all these things – you know how much I love you."

Tears escaped in rivulets down Tara's cheeks. "Because you hurt me, Willow. You made me feel like nothing; moving on so quickly. I miss you. It's so lonely where I am."

"Oh, baby," Willow sighed, her heart breaking at Tara's every syllable. "I'm so sorry. I would never want to hurt you. Sirius just… happened." Her breath caught as her poor sweet angel sobbed silently.

Her blue eyes caught Willow's and when she spoke it was like the words traveled into her mind and echoed there. "I'm just so lonely, Willow. I need you. I can't be without you any longer."

The deeply mournful look of Tara's ripped Willow's heart in two. "I'm so sorry. I don't- What can I do? Can I bring you back? How can I save you?" Willow knew she was playing with fire, even offering to do any type of resurrection, but her heart cried out to help her beloved.

"You can't bring me back – that's beyond anyone at this point." Then she peered up and gave Willow a hopeful look. "But we could still be together."

"How? How?" Willow asked with fervent desire.

Tara shrugged and smiled softly. "You could come be with me. Forever."

Willow frowned as she processed that statement. "You mean… If I die too?" she asked cautiously, not quite understanding the words of her beloved.

* * *

Sirius' head snapped up at the declaration. "Me? Your murderer?" he asked in surprise.

…Although in the darkest corner of his mind, that statement echoed many previous thoughts.

Regulus took a step forward, his eyes blazing in anger. "Yes, you," he spat vehemently. "You, dear older brother, ignored me at school because you were so proud of rebelling against mother and father by befriending your assorted riffraff, on top of decisively showcasing that you were nothing like me, a Slytherin."

Shaking his head, Sirius threw up a hand. "Wait one moment. Dammit, Reg, we were kids. How can you say I was your murderer?"

A bitter laugh escaped his thin lips. "You cut me off, brother, and never looked back. You never tried to save me. You want to know how I died?"

Paling at his accusations – that felt far more correct than her wished – Sirius shook his head. "I know how you died. Your fellow Death Eaters killed you when you tried to leave."

"Wrong again, brother," he informed scathingly. "I became a Death Eater when I was sixteen but too quickly I realized the truth about the Dark Lord – I saw him torture others, murder others, his pure cruelty. I knew he was intent on his domination and not just revolutionizing the Wizarding World. When he left Kreacher for dead I knew I had to stop him. And I tried. I took destroyed one of his Horcruxes, but I was killed afterwards in that damn cave."

"You see," he continued, "I gave my life to stop Voldemort. And you? You just gave up my life to Voldemort."

Sirius took a step back, unable to look into his brother's betrayed eyes any longer. "There was nothing I could do," he said defensively in a soft, broken voice.

"Nothing you could do? You could have talked to me, showed me you still loved me. Hell, a good brother would have stopped at nothing when it came through to saving his brother from evil!" Regulus countered shrilly.

Hot tears sprung at the corners of his eyes as he took in the truth of Regulus' words and he quickly, discreetly, wiped them away. Sirius had always felt guilty at how Regulus had turned towards the dark side, but he had tried! It wasn't like he had wanted to witness his baby brother becoming a death eater!

'Reg," he said softly. "I tried-"

"You what? Are you going to tell me you tried?" he asked derisively. "Don't be foolish, you and I both know the truth. You never tried hard enough. You wrote me off at the first sign of trouble, thinking I was doomed. Problem is, Sirius, you're not a seer. You were wrong. I turned out to be good. I tried to stop the Dark Lord. Maybe, just _maybe_ if I knew I had you to support me, I would have come to you for help. Instead, I was alone, all alone. And it got me killed."

Regulus took a breath after his long, bitter tirade. "It may not have been by your hand, but it was still you."

Slowing sinking to his knees, Sirius knelt on the smooth gravel and placed a hand at each side of his face. "No, Reg, please… I didn't know," he whispered in a gravelly voice that hinted at a never ending depth of sadness and guilt.

"You're cursed, Brother. Everyone you love dies, because of you. First me. Then your precious _adopted_ brother and his wife. Merlin, you are a Class O fuck up, aren't you?" he stated in a mockingly cruel voice.

Sirius' eyes hardened as he met his brother's laughing ones. "Don't you dare mention James and Lily," he warned.

"Why not?" he scoffed. "You killed them, you know it. You even told Harry that this past June. Why deny it now?"

His infamous temper heightening, Sirius shot up and pointed his wand aggressively at the ghost of his younger brother. "You know nothing! You know nothing of what these past thirteen years have been for me! That guilt has almost swallowed me whole and the only reason I keep going is because someday I will kill Peter Pettigrew for his treachery and Lily and James will know justice!" he boomed, his voice echoing off the walls of the building.

Regulus chuckled lightly. "Indeed? I thought your reason for living as of late has been a certain red-headed earth witch."

His spine rigid, Sirius peered closely at Regulus. "What are you trying to say, Reg?"

With a Gaelic shrug, Regulus just smirked at Sirius. "I just find it funny, that's all."

"What is funny?" Sirius asked through clenched teeth, as he wondered how it was possible that his younger brother could irritate him so easily – dead or alive.

"Funny that you're trying to have a normal life when we know that isn't possible. You killed me, James, and Lily – you think Willow is safe from you? She's going to _die, _Sirius, just like your beloved friends."

* * *

Walking around the table, Tara knelt in front of her and raised a hand inches from caressing her cheek. "It's not so bad," she whispered. "It happens so fast; feels like falling asleep. And I've seen your path Willow, you won't be able to control your magic for much longer before you hurt everyone. Everyone will be safer this way – and you and I will be happy together."

Willow jumped up and her chair clattered noisily to the floor, echoing throughout the library. "Who are you?" she asked suspiciously.

Tara frowned. "I'm your baby, your everything," she responded, her brows arching up in confusion at Willow's words.

"No you're not," Willow stated shakily, her voice full of vehemence. "Tara valued life above everything, especially after her mother. You're not her. She would never tell me to kill myself."

Tara smirked as she stood up to laugh at Willow. "Suicide thing was too far, huh? Hmm. You seemed so ripe."

It shocked Willow to the core to see Tara's sweet features perverted by this imposter; to see her Baby wear such a blatantly cruel expression.

"Tell me who you are," Willow growled at the imposter.

Tara leaned forward and raised her eyebrows lazily. "I stand by my opinion. The world would be a better place if you took a razorblade to your wrist –"

"Stop," Willow hissed, her hands shaking with tension and bundled nerves.

The creature that wore Tara's face cackled cruelly. "I can see it now. Candlelight, the Indigo Girls playing, picture of your dead girlfriend on your bloody lap."

"Stop it!" Willow shouted as she clenched her eyes shut.

"Oh, baby, you left such a big hole. It hurts so bad," she mocked nastily.

The imposter leaned closer and her face lost all sense of humor. "You don't know hurt. This last year's gonna seem like cake after what I put you and your friends through, and I am not a fan of easy death. Fact is, the whole good-versus-evil, balancing the scales thing—I'm over it. I'm done with the mortal coil. But believe me, I'm going for a big finish."

"From beneath you, it devours," Willow whispered her sudden realization.

Flashing a wicked grin, the imposter leaned back. "Oh, not it. Me." The grin stretched gruesomely until the mouth swallowed itself whole.

Then Willow was left in the library alone, still shivering.

* * *

Sirius paused for a beat as he took those words in, anger mounting with each syllable that spewed forth from Regulus. "Look, I am sorry for what happened to you," he stated as his stomach clenched painfully. "I had no idea you changed, Reg. I wish you would have told me," he implored, his eyes locked on his brother's blue ones.

"But regardless of what I may have failed to do for you, do not speak of Willow and do _not _speak of her death."

Regulus shook his head with a small smile. "My, feel strongly for her, do you? Don't bother threatening me, Brother. After all, it's not like you can deal me a worse hand than you already have. But I hope you realize that I speak the truth. The Unspeakables are after you and Willow is going to get caught in the crossfire. I know it."

Something about the level of certainty in his voice made Sirius seriously consider his words. "What do you mean, you know?" he asked cautiously.

"Death's a funny thing. Being in this state, I hear all sorts of things. And I know that if you don't leave Willow, she's going to die. And it will be all your fault."

It felt like Sirius had the wind knocked out of him and he felt all the color leave his face. Sirius knew that the veil beyond death was full of mystery, but if his brother was a ghost and telling him this… Then it may just be true.

And if his presence meant Willow's death… There was no way Sirius could stay. He care too much for her – far too much.

"I would suggest you take Buckbeak tonight, before anyone returns to stop you. They won't understand – they didn't grow up around ghosts like we did. They'll probably think you are crazy," Regulus offered in a soft, kinder voice.

Sirius shook his head numbly, his mind whirling with dark thoughts. "Thank you, Reg, for telling me."

"Of course. I must leave now."

"Wait!"

Regulus paused and looked at Sirius expectantly. "Yes?"

"I'm sorry – so sorry, Reg," Sirius apologized in a sincere tone, his eyes brimming with unshed, bitter tears.

Regulus nodded in acknowledgement, his face stoic, and then he just blinked out of existence.

Leaving alone Sirius as he made his way back to the Summers household to grab his belongings, Buckbeak, and begin his nomadic existence again.

* * *

A/N:

In case you didn't know, Tara was originally supposed to be the First's 'costume' when It visited Tara, but apparently Amber Benson had a scheduling conflict and did not want to have the fans' last impression of Tara be evil (although apparently, Joss was going to have her brought back to life through a wish granted to Buffy in later S7 but Amber was busy at the time- crazy info you can find on wikipedia ;)

--- Hence why I really wanted to explore this First Tara/Willow moment—I hope I did it justice! Crying Willow is brilliant but so hard to bring that level of emotion to paper, so I hope some of that passion and angst from that scene got through.

…So…Thoughts? :)

*a Class O fuck up- get it, Class O for Outstanding?? *snickers*


	37. Revelations

**Chapter 37: Conversations with Dead People, Part II**

Regulus had told him to take Buckbeak before anyone returned but as Sirius thought more on it seemed that to leave without saying good-bye was cowardly. Willow and everyone else had shown him such kindness that he couldn't in good conscience leave so abruptly without notice.

Of course, it may have been he also hated the idea of not seeing Willow just one last time.

Regardless, he would leave tonight as soon as he told her. Sirius quite honestly did not know if he had the willpower to leave if he did not do it tonight.

Opening the door softly, Sirius idly wondered if Dawn was still awake. As his eyes blinked to adjust to the darkness, is jaw dropped at the sight before him. The entire living room appeared to have been partially destroyed and the scene felt very wrong.

"Dawn?" he shouted in an alarmed voice.

* * *

After getting a ride home for the Campus Escort services – fellow students hired to take home people late at night, especially females who were afraid to walk home alone – Willow jogged up the steps to the Summers' household. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she flung the front door, deathly afraid that this 'from beneath you _I _devour' thing had attacked her friends. A destroyed living room – furniture ascrew, windows blown, and more – met her eyes.

"Dawn? Sirius?" she cried out in a panicked tone.

"Up here," answered Sirius' voice.

Willow ran up the steps and found Sirius cradling Dawn as they sat on her bed. The teenager's eyes were swollen and she was shivering, even as Sirius pulled a blanket over her bare arms.

"Dawnie?" Willow gasped.

Looking at her with grief-stricken eyes, Dawn spoke. "Mom was here. And so was something else. It… attacked me. Tried to prevent me from talking to her. But she did, for a moment." She shivered again and pressed her cheek against Sirius' chest.

"No, Dawnie, it wasn't your mom. I had Tara appear to me, but it wasn't her," explained softly – beyond angry that this thing had tried to mess with Dawn's mind.

Dawn jerked up, as did Sirius. "What?" she gasped. "Tara came back?"

Shaking her head furious, Willow told her no. "That thing, that 'from beneath you it devours' thing? It dressed as Tara – looked like her, talked like her, but it wasn't her. It was trying to trick me, Dawnie," she said sadly.

Sirius' eyebrows furrowed in thought, but he didn't speak up.

"Well it was mom," she said stubbornly. "I know it was."

Willow hesitated – she doubted that Dawn would change her mind if her opinion was so set. "Dawn, this thing wanted me to kill myself. It wasn't Tara and I bet it also chose to mess with you as well."

"No!" she countered vehemently, pulling away from Sirius. "She didn't say anything like that. She told me that she loved me and that she loved Buffy."

"Dawn," Willow sighed, unsure what to say.

"Just go," she ordered bitterly as she flung herself onto her bed. "I want to be alone."

Willow and Sirius exchanged a glance as they sat up and left the room.

"Are you okay?" he asked in a concerned tone.

Willow took a sharp intake of breath. "No. Not yet."

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Sirius fidget nervously and then something occurred to her. "Wait… Where were you when this thing was attacking Dawn?"

A guilty look passed over his face as he shifted to the side. "Ah, I went out for a night stroll," he muttered off-handedly.

"What?" she screeched as she glared at him. "Did you just say you left – even though those Gandalf spy wannabes are after you? _And_ you left Dawn alone thereby having her get attacked by some creepy thing pretending to be her mom and destroying the living room?" Willow's temple pounded furiously, she was so upset with Sirius' careless behavior.

He held up his hands in defense. "Willow, I know. Believe me, when I came back I felt awful at seeing what happened to Dawn. But at the same time, how was I supposed to know Dawn would get attacked tonight? I'm going mad being stuck inside all the time and needed to get out."

She grabbed his arm and dragged him into her bedroom where Dawn couldn't hear them as well. "How were you supposed to know Dawn was going to get attacked if you left?" she hissed angrily. "Because it's _Dawn_, Sirius! That girl has worst luck than anyone!"

Eyes downcast, Sirius sighed heavily.

"Not to mention those guys are after you! Leaving – especially without telling us – was extremely reckless! What were you thinking?" she asked, her heart not even wanting to consider the possibilities of what could have happened.

Willow felt a change in the atmosphere as his icy eyes met her own. "Willow, I'm a bloody adult for Merlin's sake – I'm thirty five years old. You aren't my mother and I'm tired of being babied here – you can't keep me inside like I'm bloody grounded. On top of that, I'm already feeling enough guilt tonight without you laying more on me!" he snapped viciously.

Taking a step backwards in shock, her eyes began filling with tears at his angry tone.

As her tears fell, so did Sirius' stony façade. "Willow, please don't cry," he asked. His arms reached out for her but then he pulled back and muttered angrily at himself. He headed towards her dresser and pulled open the drawer she had given him. Yanking out his items, he conjured a bag and began piling in his belongings.

"Sirius?" she asked in a cautious voice. "What are you doing?" Hasty hands wiped away tears as she watched her boyfriend pack.

He turned to her with a distressed expression. "Willow, I can't stay here anymore. I have to leave."

"Why?" she gasped. First seeing Tara and now seeing Sirius trying to walk out on her was too much for this witch. "Because I yelled at you? That's hardly mature," she stated flatly, frustrated not just with Sirius, but her painful life in general at the moment.

Sirius ran his hand through his hair and avoided his eye contact. "No, it's not that. But you did remind me why I have to leave. I'm cursed, Willow. I screw everything up. And if I stay then the Unspeakables are going to come for me – and you're going to get caught in the cross-fire. I'm tired of people I lo- care about dying on me," he stated resolutely.

"Sirius, you aren't cursed," she whispered, her heart breaking a little at seeing the pain in his eyes.

"First Regulus, then Lily and James. It'll be you next, Willow. I have to leave – it's for your own good." Sirius brushed past her as he made her way down the stairs.

Willow stood there in shocked silence. Sirius really thought his presence was going to kill her? He had mentioned Lily and James, but she had no idea who Regulus was. The thought of him leaving hurt her deeply.

But then again… Maybe it was for the best. Maybe Willow had jumped into this new relationship too quickly. Seeing Tara tonight had reopened so many old wounds that had finally been healing. She had forgotten how much she had loved Tara – loved her so much there was a hole in her heart. Willow felt guilty that she had even forgotten in the first place –what kind of person did that make her? She didn't want Tara to think she had forgotten about her or thought their relationship was just some college sexual experimentation.

No, that wasn't right – those weren't her thoughts. Willow bit her lip in frustration as she tried to make sense of all her feelings. She had to forcibly remind herself that what had spoken to her tonight had not been Tara. Tara had loved her, deeply, and never would have said any of that. A sweet, kind, loving woman, Willow knew that Tara would want her happiness…

But even as she thought such things her heart was still conflicted. A part of her believed that Tara would want her to find happiness and another part thought it was bad of her to fall for Sirius.

A door slammed shut downstairs. Willow's heat sunk as she realized that Sirius was really leaving. He was _leaving_. Now. Maybe even forever. It's not like escaped convicts had a lot of easy mobility, after all.

Her chest tightened as she remembered how the last man she loved had left her – for apparently her, and his, own good as well.

Goddess help her, even after the incident with the fake-Tara toying with her heart, Willow realized she cared more for Sirius than she thought. The idea of him leaving her right now… It left her breathless. Willow didn't love him – she had only known him two months or so – but there was something about him that made her realize she _could_ love him someday.

Yes, she could see herself loving Sirius Black.

And that realization was all she needed to bound down the stairs, praying that Sirius hadn't flown away on Buckbeak yet. Or, if he had, she would just do a locator spell. Heck, Willow still wasn't comfortable doing major spells but she would summon a portal to find him if she had to, darn it.

Her feet skidded to a stop as she reached the back door and jerked it open, causing it to bounce against the wall. Stepping outside she could see the faint outline of her favorite hippogriff and mounted on top of him was Sirius.

"Sirius! Wait!" she called rather desperately.

As she got closer she could tell that Sirius seemed surprised to see her. "Willow."

"Sirius, gosh darn it, don't you dare leave!" she ordered firmly, Resolve Face set in place.

She saw him smile – he did find her Resolve Face to be adorable – and then he quickly straightened his expression. "Willow, I have to. As soon as Buckbeak bloody gets up," he growled.

Buckbeak bristled and jerked himself underneath Sirius.

"Hey!" Sirius shouted. "Calm down, you damn hippogriff. I told you to go!" he ordered desperately, his eyes avoiding Willow's.

Willow smiled and patted Buckbeak's cheek. "Buckbeak's a smart fella – he knows you guys shouldn't leave."

"Or maybe you females have showered him with so many soddin' treats he's too fat to fly anymore," Sirius grumbled.

With an indignant screech, the hippogriff bucked his legs and Sirius flew off – but landed gently on the grass due to Willow's improv levitation spell.

"Sorry, Sirius. You can't go. I'm not going to let you," she stated with a small smile playing at the corners of her lips.

He eyed her warily, like a wounded animal, as he stood up. "Willow, please don't make this harder than it has to be. I can't stay knowing that I'll just put you in danger," he pleaded softly.

"Who said you'll put me in danger? I'm best friends with a Slayer and I'm a badass Wicca. I'm in danger every day, Sirius! You won't make it any worse than it already is."

"Yes!" he urged fervently. "It will, Regulus told me so – that if I stay you'll die!"

Comprehension dawned on her. "Who's Regulus?" she asked suspiciously.

"My brother," he responded hesitatingly.

Willow filed away that bit of information away for later.

"And he just decided to visit you tonight?" she asked archly.

"Ah, yes, in a manner of speaking."

Willow sighed. "Sirius, let me guess – Regulus is dead?"

Sirius hissed painfully. "Yes."

She grabbed his shoulders and shook him. "Sir! You know that both Dawn and I were attacked by this thing pretending to be a ghost of someone we loved!"

He grabbed her arms, but didn't move them. "Your person told you to commit suicide. Dawn's said she loved her. And what I saw? Didn't tell me to kill myself or anyone." He shrugged. "Gave me a hell of a well-deserved guilt trip, but that's it. And he was a ghost – non-corporeal and everything. That happens often in the Wizarding World, people lingering after death."

"But he told you to leave otherwise I might die?" she asked softly.

Her gave her a considering look and nodded abruptly.

"Sirius! Someone's playing us. Someone wants me dead and you to leave and who knows what they really said to Dawn," she explained.

He let out a shaky sigh. "You don't think I wondered that after you told us about your experience tonight? But regardless, Regulus – or whoever it was – has a point. You've got enough bad things happening here without me adding to it."

"But that's _exactly_ why I _do_ need you," she whispered as she ran one hand through his raven waves. "Sirius, I don't want you to leave me." Her eyes searched his hopefully.

"Willow," he sighed huskily. "So much has happened to people I was supposed to look out for before. I can't afford to have anything happen to you."

"We'll look out for each other," she promised. "It'll be okay as long as we're facing these monsters together." Willow meant the real monsters that were after them, but she also implied the figurative ones as well – Goddess only knew how damaged they both still were.

"Willow, I don't want to leave you, but-"

Pressing two fingers against his lips, she hushed him. "Then don't. You've heard the stories – we've faced a freaking hell goddess. We can so take this devouring beneath us thing," she said lightly with a smile.

He rolled her two fingers into his mouth and gently sucked on them, making her stomach suddenly tighten. Pulling back, he gave her a deep look. "I didn't very much so want to leave in the first place, Willow – and now you are making it much harder."

Sirius pulled her closer and cradled her cheek with his large palm. They shared a long look until he finally sighed heavily. "Perhaps you are right about Regulus and some demonic force is trying to get rid of me. I still suspect, in my heart, that there may be truth to the idea, but I suppose it would be easier for me to keep you safe if I stayed."

Willow swatted his arm. "We'll keep each other safe, 'kay? 'Cause hello feminism and all that, medieval wizard man," she said lightly with a roll of her eyes.

Raising his eyebrows in amusement, he smirked. "Ah, yes – feminism. I suppose that means I cannot gather you in my arms, carry you to your bedroom, throw you onto the bed, and shower you with kisses? That perhaps _you_ would like to do the gathering and throwing" he asked teasingly with a wry smile.

Lips pursed, she glared at him. "Well, I could if I _wanted _ to, you know… But I suppose I should let you do that – just this once. So you can feel manly and all," she offered congenially.

Chuckling, Sirius gathered her into his arms – enjoying her surprised squeak – and began carrying her into the house.

* * *

It was early afternoon and Lucius Malfoy levitated clothes into his suitcase as he packed for the journey to America. All his hard work lobbying Fudge had paid off in spades. The reconnaissance mission to Sunnydale, California had been approved and now Lucius would finally have an opportunity to kidnap Willow and turn her to the dark side. His reports had discovered that the witch was currently rehabilitating and struggling to turn good, but he would rip that recovery out of her hands and release her great power. Together, they would make the Wizarding World plead for their mercy – exactly as his life should have been if that Potter brat hadn't destroyed the Dark Lord.

"Hmm, packing your black underwear? Are you planning on getting lucky?" a female asked in a laughing tone.

Turning, he was surprised to see a young, tan, blond female smiling at him. Grabbing his wand he pointed it at the intruder. "Who are you and how did you break into the house wards?" he asked accusingly.

"Lucius, Lucius," she said disappointingly. "You really think your little stick is going to hurt me?"

"Trust me, Madam, I think it can hurt quite a lot," he threatened icily.

"Grr baby, grr. I do love that fire in you," she smirked as she sauntered over towards him.

"Who _are_ you?" he asked again, slightly appalled at her arrogance but also quite turned on by her provocative walk and revealing clothing.

She winked at him. "That is definitely the question of the day, now isn't it?"

He stared at her flummoxed and debated on just tossing her onto the bed and ripping off her clothes – Narcissa had turned a blind eye to his 'indiscretions' for years anyways. After all, if a beautiful woman was going to walk into his bedroom, she better not be here to tease him.

"Does this body please you?" the woman asked sultrily as she spun in a slow circle, being sure to shake her firm bottom encased in leather pants.

"I- ahem," Lucius felt his body react to the sight of her and decided to do what a Malfoy did best – take what he wanted. He went to grabbed her and stumbled forward, landing on the floor of his bedroom.

Staring up in shock through tendrils of tossed platinum hair, he asked, "What are you?"

"Ding, ding, dong! Good question. Not who, but what. Although as for the 'who' I'll give you a clue as to whose body I'm wearing – it's one of the young ladies that you are so obsessed with."

"The Slayer?" he asked in surprised.

"That's right!" she giggled. "Bubbly personality, bouncy blond hair, and killer right hook, all squeezed into some very tight and revealing clothes. Likey?"

"Very much," he said in a very male voice as he admired the body.

"As for the what, just know that I'm the Big Bad – and not just of the year, either. The Big Bad of this world, of all time. The one that will turn humans into slaves and let chaos and evil run rampant."

Lucius took a seat at his desk and gave her – or It – an intrigued look. "And you are here because…?" he asked quick to the point. If this thing had power, Lucius wouldn't mind getting some of that. It was always beneficial to befriend those more powerful than him.

She smiled. "Straight to the point – That's why I like you Luci-boy. I've had my eye on you for a while and let me just say, your talents were wasted on that small-minded Tom Riddle," she scoffed.

Lucius tensed – few knew of his true past allegiances.

"Don't worry baby, I know everything about you. Your darkness calls to me like a siren and since I'm in need of some extra help suddenly, I thought I'd chat you up."

"You need help?" he asked warily. If this thing had power Lucius knew he wanted to use it to achieve his own ends but he knew to always be careful of what dark creatures asked of you.

Sighing, she lounged on his bed – or rather just appeared to since Lucius knew that she was non-corporeal. "Unfortunately my plans earlier today fell through and I'm recruiting you, you evil stud muffin you."

His brow raised in amusement at being called an 'evil stud muffin', which he took to be a compliment.

"Here's the deal. You want Willow Rosenberg aka the Dark One aka a huge to be pain in my ass – if that American seer was right. But your plan of heading over there with your Unspeakable pals to kidnap here is the stupidest thing ever I've ever heard. That girl's got power. If you want her, it'll take subtlety and finesse – not black ops nor the black arts."

Lucius sneered at her. "And I assume you have a better plan?"

"Oh, yes," she smiled sweetly with a hint of malevolence.

"And I should listen to you because…?"

"Because you'll get the girl, you'll get the power, and when my true form is released into this tiny world where I'll crush my enemies like gnats, you will be one of my top acolytes."

His lips curled up into a devilish smile. "I'm listening."


	38. Shovel Speeches

**Chapter 38: Shovel Speeches**

A/N:

This chapter takes place between 'Convos with Dead People' and 'Sleeper'.

Crazy mad thanks to a href=".

" zephyrRS /a for issuing a rec!! 'Tis appreciated!

* * *

"Hey!" Dawn greeted as she got home from her sleepover at Kit's house. "Where is everyone?"

"In here!" Buffy called from the kitchen.

Walking in, Dawn saw that Buffy, Anya, and Xander were all sitting around the island table eating lunch – take out pizza as usual.

"Mmm, yummy," she commented as she snatched a piece. "Where's Willow and Sirius?"

Anya rolled her eyes, her blond hair swishing over her shoulders. "Being disgustingly cute as always. Sirius can't seem to get used to the fact that it's early November and only sixty degrees outside so they're out there cuddling or whatnot."

Buffy snorted at Anya's bitter tone and raised an amused eyebrow. "Jealous much?"

Anya huffed and crossed her arms. "Yes! It's just not fair. I'm human again and can engage in sweaty, sexy fun but I can't find any. I mean, if it's about karma then maybe I could understand, seeing as how I destroyed the lives of men for a millennia, but Willow was Little Miss Naughty Pants too!"

Giving her a deadpanned look, Xander responded wryly, "But Ahn, you did get to have sex at least once since becoming human."

Plastering a smile on her face, she patted his arm. "Yes, yes. And you were very good with the sweaty fun times, but I thought we both agreed it was more of a 'one last time' type of deal."

Buffy and Dawn averted their eyes, finding random kitchen appliances very interesting.

"Well, yeah, we did," Xander acknowledged – although he didn't particularly sound happy about it. "I'm just saying, it's not like you haven't had _any_ sex since then."

The back door opened, thankfully ending Anya and Xander's sex talk. Sirius and Willow stepped in laughing with their arms wrapped around each other. "Hey guys!" Willow called cheerfully.

"Hey," they chorused back.

"I'm about to meet up with Amy. I should be home in a couple hours."

"Will, you sure it'll be okay to hang out with her? I mean, she did screw you over last year," Buffy cautioned.

Willow shrugged, but looked determined. "I know, but she called me up a few days ago to apologize and everything. Apparently she did a lot of healing with the Campus Wiccans group and is trying to mend her old relationships."

"Yeah, but she did use to enjoy being the Wannabe Wicked Witch of the West Coast," Buffy pushed in a concerned tone.

Sighing, Willow weaved her fingers through Sirius' in an unconscious attempt to claim support. "Buff, I know what it's like to need to make amends. Amy deserves a second chance – just like how you guys gave me one."

"Okay, okay," Buffy surrendered with open arms. "Just being Worry Girl. You're right."

Kissing Sirius lightly, Willow said good-bye and walked out the door.

With a silly grin on his face, Sirius mentioned he was going to feed Buckbeak and went back outside.

"They really like each other, don't they?" Buffy wondered out loud.

"Yeah, have to say, didn't really think Willow would have gone for an older man – especially since two years ago she promised me that she was gay and would keep her mangy paws off Xander," Anya scowled.

"Plus, older guy type is more so Buffy's type," Xander joked with a laugh – one that died at the sight of Buffy's scorching glare.

"Demon magnet," she muttered, but her eyes sparkled with mirth.

"Well, I like Sirius. I think they fit pretty well together," Dawn opined.

"Yeah, so far he seems on the up and up as far as Hellmouth boyfriends go. Will told me they fought last week – after the creepy ghost thing – but they've talked it out since then," Buffy informed.

"Ooh, about what?" Dawn asked eagerly, the teenager hungry for gossip.

"Sirius was pretty pissed about being treated like a kid locked up here and Willow was angry that he tried to leave 'cause of the creepy ghost warning. But," Buffy shrugged, "I guess she explained further about how Oz had left her – for her and his own good – and why she was so upset, besides everything else."

"Bet he felt like a tool. Men," Anya snorted. "Always trying to run away when they get cryptic messages from people," she added pointedly.

Xander shifted uncomfortably in his seat, avoiding her eyes, and set his pizza down – suddenly not feeling hungry.

"Yeah, guess he felt pretty guilty," Buffy said hurriedly to distract the tension between the former couple. "And he and Willow made amends on the whole 'not bossing him around' thing and keeping him safe at home. Luckily, something must have worked because Sirius hasn't been as anxious to leave anymore. I think she knocked some sense into him."

"You know," Xander mused out loud, "they've been dating a month now and I don't think anyone's given Sirius a shovel speech yet."

Buffy's eyes narrowed in a predatory way. "You're right. We got so caught up with stuff we forget." She gave a toothy smile. "I think we need to fix that!"

The four of them leaned towards each other as Buffy began throwing out ideas.

* * *

"Hey Sirius! Hey Buckbeak!" Dawn called as she walked outside, just in time to see the hippogriff slurp down his lunch.

"Hey Dawn!" Sirius greeted cheerfully. "Have you read chapter ten of your Charms text yet?" When he had discovered her talent, Sirius had immediately sent a request to Harry to mail him his old textbooks. Their new postal system worked very well – Sirius would send Muggle mail to Amelia, the Devon Coven leader, who would then owl Harry and she would forward all messages from Harry. Took a bit of time – Muggles were rather slow – but it worked and kept the Ministry off his back.

"Sirius," she whined. "It's a Saturday and I have Monday until my next lesson!"

Smirking at her, he shook his head. Funny how she reminded him of what Sirius and James were like back at Hogwarts. It was a good thing they had Remus – and later Lily – to keep them on track. Too bad Moony wasn't here to help him with Dawn – Sirius was not very comfortable serving in the authority figure capacity.

"All right then. Want to feed Buckbeak?" he held out his wand.

Grinning, she took it from his hand. "_Wingardium Leviosa_," she incanted as she swished and flicked the wand at the next slab of meat. It floated precariously through the air and she had to concentrate to keep it from shooting into the sky. Sirius had told her that she would become a very powerful witch someday due to the amount of power she was already showcasing. Too bad that meant she had to work doubly hard to focus it.

As the meat hovered closer to Buckbeak's mouth the hippogriff snatched it out of the air – knowing all to well that Dawn's magic had a tendency to go haywire at any moment.

Dawn patted the hippogriff and murmured loving words to it. Seeing Sirius chuckle at her out of the corner of her eye, she turned towards him. "So Sirius, how are you and Willow doing?" she asked, not even bothering to be sneaky about her intentions.

"We're great, actually," he beamed. "Why do you ask?"

Continuing to pet Buckbeak, she gave him a blank stare. "Sirius, you're a pretty cool dude – except of course when you get all cranky during my lessons."

He held up a finger. "Dawn, don't you think I have a right to be cranky when you read too far ahead in your Transfiguration textbook and somehow managed to transfigure Spike into an actual railroad spike last week?"

Dawn snickered. "Aw, come one – that was awesome!"

Sirius gave in to a resounding bark of laughter. "All right, I'll give you that."

Remembering her purpose for speaking to Sirius, Dawn ceased her laughter and put her blank stare back in place. "Anyways, back to the matter at hand."

Sirius raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "Yes?"

Continuing in a serious voice, Dawn said, "When mom died; when Buffy died, Willow and Tara were like my parents during that time. Willow is very important to me and I've seen her go through a lot of bad things in the last year. So I just want to let you know that if you turn out to be just one more bad thing and hurt her, I'll hurt you. I'll take you up for a midnight ride on Buckbeak and just when we're high enough, I'll push you off and make you go splat against the pavement."

Throughout her speech Sirius' eyebrows continued to rise in surprise until they almost reached his hairline. He blinked at the teenage girl who had just threatened to murder him.

"Okay?"

He nodded. "Dawn, I would never hurt Willow," he promised.

"Good!" she said cheerfully as she gave Buckbeak one last pat on the cheek and walked away.

"Because I would hate to have to murder you and then get a new Wizarding teacher."

* * *

Still amused by Dawn's threat – deadly, but quite cute as well – Sirius walked into the kitchen. Anya glanced up at him and smiled as she poured some tequila into a blender that was filled with fruit juice and frozen strawberries

"I'm making margaritas, want any?" she offered nicely – almost too nicely.

Sirius wasn't one for margaritas – he was more of a firewhiskey kind of man – but he had heard Willow lauding Anya's excellent margaritas before. "Sure, thanks."

Anya smiled and pressed the power button on the blender. As it whirred to life Sirius noticed that she was still smiling at him in a way that made him feel suddenly very uneasy.

Once the mixture was finished blending she poured it into two glasses and set them down at the table. Her expression turned serious as she slid into the seat across from him.

"Thanks," he said as he took a tentative sip, wondering why the ex-demon was staring at him like that.

"Do you like it?" she asked.

"Yeah, very good. Lots of tequila," he evaluated.

Anya nodded. "That's good."

A silent moment passed as he took another sip.

"Sirius, you do realize that if you do anything at all to hurt Willow I will cut off your penis, stick it into a blender with some tequila, and make you drink a penis-rita. Okay?"

He choked on his drink at her words and had to struggle to swallow. "I completely understand," he said between coughs. "I will not hurt Willow," he promised for the second time.

"Good. Now drink up before it melts!"

Sirius shook his head and took a long gulp of the fiery liquid as he unconsciously rubbed his groin – just to double check.

* * *

After finishing his drink with Anya – who was luckily much less scary after her initial threat – Sirius walked into the living room to read a book that Willow had picked up for him titled '_Dark Wizards: Their Rise (And Fall) From Power_'. He was still hoping to find something to stop Voldemort from resurrecting before Harry got attacked again.

He chuckled as he saw Xander bent over with a hammer in his hand. "Did Dawn or something evil break something again?" he asked.

Xander laughed and shook his head. "No, just putting a bookcase together for the Dawnster. With all her new magic books she ran out of room with her old one."

Selecting his book from the coffee table, Sirius sat down on the couch and observed Xander hammering a nail in. Prior to Sunnydale, Sirius knew nothing at all about tools. But since he had witnessed Xander rebuild various parts of the house a dozen times already, he was catching on. "If you like, I could just put that together with magic. It might save you some time," he offered helpfully.

Xander shrugged. "Naw, I like being Carpenter Man and Keeper of Tools. It's relaxing to build things. You ever build anything?"

Sirius laughed at the idea. "No, Wizards use magic for everything. My parents considered themselves too above manual labor and I never really needed to build anything. Seems bloody complicated, anyways," he gestured towards Xander's tool box.

"Complicated? Nah, it gets easy after a while – especially when you have assorted demons destroying property as often as they do around here. And it's much easier with the new tool box Willow got for me a couple weeks ago." Xander set the box on the coffee table and opened the lid. "See? Willow enchanted it so it holds every tool I need. Sort of like the manly version of Mary Poppins's bag."

"Hold on, I want to show you something," Xander added as his eyes lit up with a sudden idea.

Xander scrounged around in the tool box until he picked up a strange item that looked a bit like a futuristic gun. "See? This tool even holds my nail gun. Ever seen one of these before?"

"No," Sirius answered as he wondered where Xander was going with this.

"It's a nail gun and can shoot out six inch nails. Definitely one of the deadliest tools in my box. And you know what's great about this box that my best friend made for me? It keeps the gun charged so I can nail something at the drop of a hat."

"Willow is brilliant like that," Sirius said, feeling a bit nervous at the implied threat.

"Yeah, she is. I'm lucky that we've been friends for seventeen years of my life. She's the most important person in the world to me," Xander stated sagely.

"Yes, after Harry she's the most important person to me as well," Sirius acknowledged easily.

Xander smiled. "Good, I'm glad you get it. Because I have to admit, it's been great having you around, Sirius. After a while the overabundance of y-chromosomes can take their toll and you're the first male friend I've had around here since Oz, which has been nice – especially because you're a much better conversationalist."

"But," Xander said soberly as he held up the nail gun menacingly. "If you ever hurt Willow I will not hesitate to nail your dead body to the wall and cover you with an exquisite painting that no one will ever think to look behind. We cool?"

Sirius bit his lip and nodded. "We cool," he confirmed.

"Great! Hey, after I'm done with the bookcase, you wanna play some Mario Kart?" Xander asked eagerly, happy that the death threat was over with now.

"Only if you let me be Yoshi this time, I'm tired of you spitting those soddin' eggs at me," Sirius grumbled good-naturedly.

* * *

After an hour of video games, Xander ended up heading back to his house. Realizing he still had a while until Willow returned and since he was tired of reading, Sirius changed into his tracksuit to work out in the yard. When he was younger Sirius worked out a decent amount – the ladies did enjoy a good set of abs, after all – but he realized that his increased strength, stamina, and reflexes would help with his dueling as well. Someone could throw whatever curses they wanted at him, but if he could dodge it he'd be a lot better off.

Once outside he began doing a set of seventy-five sit-ups until his abs were burning good and proper. With a grunt, he stood up to move onto his next routine.

"Hey Sir," Buffy greeted him.

Glancing up he smiled at her. "Afternoon, Buffy."

"Working on the same regiment I helped you put together?"

"Yes, it's been working for me pretty good. I miss running though. Honestly, I doubt those wanker Unspeakables will be grabbing for me if I just take a run around the block."

Buffy nodded. "You know what? You're right. I was just about to go for a run. Want to go together?" She grinned devilishly. "I promise I'll not go all Slayer strength running on you."

"Sounds great!" Sirius beamed, eager to get out of the house.

Quickly they set off from the Summers house and began venturing deeper into Sunnydale. Eventually, Sirius realized they had run by five graveyards and they had barely even covered the whole town.

"What's with the sheer amount of graveyards?" he asked as Buffy led them down the path into one.

"Hellmouth," Buffy shrugged. "Home to dozens of churches and even more cemeteries. What's really funny is that a good number of these graves are empty, thanks to people rising as vampires."

"Huh, guess you're right. Never though of that," he panted. Sirius was getting in shape but he was not match at all for Slayer stamina.

"Oh yeah, just one of the fun little facts that go along with being a Slayer," she joked wryly. "But it comes in handy," she admitted.

"What comes in handy?" he asked in a confused tone.

She slowed down and finally stopped mid-way through the cemetery to give Sirius a moment to breath. His hands rested on his knees for a moment as he took in some deep breaths until he finally looked back up at her.

"The knowledge of all the empty graves. See, Sirius, you've started to become part of the Scooby gang and I like having you around," she said lightly. "You've finally given Xander a male friend because, let's face it, I'm not really into the fighting video games when my life is lived like one. And you're real good with Dawn, teaching her all the magics. As for Willow, she's changed a lot in the last two months – for the better – and I think that has a lot to do with you."

Sirius sighed as he felt his fourth threat of the day coming.

"_But_ if you ever do anything to hurt Willow – because she is pretty sensitive in the love department – I will hunt you down and bury you alive in one of these abandoned graves where no one will be able to hear your screams." Her light green eyes pierced him and Sirius was suddenly reminded of the fact that Buffy Summers was a vampire slayer.

Holding up his hand as if he were making an oath, he swore, "I would never hurt Willow, Buffy. I promise. I care about her a lot."

She smiled and ruffled his hair – making a disgusted face as she realized how sweaty he was. "Ew," she muttered as she wiped her hand – it was so easy to forget how sweaty non-supernatural people could get while exercising. "Good," she added happily. "Glad to hear it."

Sirius chuckled and followed her as she began jogging again. It was really nice that Willow's friends loved her so much.

And at the same time, it was oh so very scary.

* * *

Sirius was preparing dinner when a smoking figure slammed the back door open. "Bloody hell that burns," the Brit grumbled. "Oh, hey there wizard man. Seen the missus of the house?"

"Evenin', Spike. Buffy just dropped Dawn off at Kit's house. Should be back soon. Have a seat."

Spike sat down and sniffed the air. "Something smells good. What are you cooking?"

"Going a bit all out tonight with some braised lamb and vegetables from recipes I found in a Wizarding cookbook," Sirius answered as he began cutting some asparagus.

"Ah, have a fight with your own missus?" Spike asked knowingly.

Sirius chuckled. "No, actually. But I did get four death threats from the others so I thought it couldn't hurt to suck up every once in a while.

"Death threats? From Buffy and her Super Friends?" Spike snorted derisively.

"Yeah. They all threatened me with various creative threats that they promised to carry out if I ever hurt Willow," he explained.

"Ah ha," Spike murmured in comprehension. "They gave you the good 'ol Shovel Speeches, eh? Tryin' to protect Red's honor, I 'spose."

"Shovel Speeches?" Sirius inquired in a puzzled tone.

"Yeah. Something Red started with that beyond boring Riley bloke, essentially telling the wanker that if hurt Buffy she'd beat him to death with a shovel. This lot isn't big on the vague disclaimers."

"No, they aren't," Sirius laughed.

"I wouldn't worry 'bout it, if I was you mate. They talk big, but never exactly follow through – otherwise that Riley fellow would be dead by now," Spike said in a reassuring tone.

"Oh, I'm not worried about it," Sirius shrugged.

"Good. Because at the end of the day, it's me you need to worry about. Red's an alright witch. Bestest friends with Buffy and a right little mom to Niblet. That alone means if Willow is ever hurting, two people I love will be hurting. And that means you'll be hurting," Spike glared. "If you hurt Red I'm liable to beat you, drain you dry, vamp you, beat you again, and then dust you just so I get the pleasure of killing you twice. Alright then?"

Sirius saw Spike's eyes flash yellow and realized the vampire was dead – literally, in fact – serious. "I understand. I won't hurt her," he vowed.

The front door opened and Sirius heard Willow's voice. "Mmm! What smells good?"

"Dinner," Sirius answered back, happiness bubbling inside him at hearing her voice.

She bounded into the kitchen with an excited expression and wrapped her arms around Sirius. "Hey baby," she said as she gave him a sweet kiss. "How was your day?"

Sirius chuckled and shook his head. "Very informative," he replied with a secretive smile as he brushed his lips against her forehead.

* * *

A/N:

Hey dearest readers! Got a question for you:

I have finished an upcoming chapter that features Sirius and Willow in some activities that will require a FR21 rating. Currently this story is rated FR18 and I am unsure if I should use that entire chapter here, or just use the FR18 snippets and feature the rest in an accompanying short. I've never written FR21 before but it turned out very well and I want to use it. Let me know if you have a preference to keep this story more kid-friendly with just lots of swearing, or if I should make this more Cinemax style and allow readers to access that bit in a separate story.

Also, hoped you enjoyed the threats and got some of the various clues hidden in this chapter…

Thanks for reading!


	39. The British Invasion

**Chapter 39:**

A/N:

Hola! This episode is based off of Buffy episode #10 'Bring on the Night' (and does feature a few lines from that ep, so please do not sure!). Episodes #8 (Sleeper) & #9 (Never Leave Me) happened as they did in the series. Remember, I am avoiding fruitless duplication so unless a Buffy episode or scene changes significantly because of Sirius & other HPers, I will avoid writing it.

Thanks to all the reviewers who enjoyed the shovel speeches & provided feedback on the potential rating change! I'm still editing that chappie so there's no word yet on what it'll look like – you'll find out soon though :) And special thanks to DeepBlueJoy for being such a helpful person to talk to while writing :)

Also, I know this chappie isn't as long as the most recent ones, but I wanted to give you an update as I work out the next couple chapters :)

And now… further madness begins!

* * *

Sirius Black clung onto Buckbeak's feathers as they soared over a set of curling grey clouds sitting over Sunnydale. The air was moist as the clouds consumed more and more droplets of water in preparation for a downpour. A shrieking gale of wind passed by them and Sirius fought back a shiver. Then Sirius found himself laughing at the realization that the weather seemed in perfect accordance with his thoughts.

"A storm's a brewing!" he yelled over the wind to his winged companion. Buckbeak made a noise in return and Sirius could have sworn in its translated form it was a very sarcastic "Duh!" Damn hippogriff had always possessed an attitude and time spent with the Summers women seemed to have increased that.

"Let's go higher! See if we can see any lightning!" Sirius suggested recklessly. Buckbeak released a negative sound and began to slowly descend.

"Aw, come on Buckbeak! Live a little! We'll be fine!" he cajoled.

Buckbeak discontinued his descent but he proceeded no higher. However, Sirius was satisfied.

With a grim look, he took in the rolling dark clouds that surrounded them. Sirius felt such an innate desire to _feel_ that he had left his friends and gotten Buckbeak to agree to this insane trip into the skies. With the recent discoveries over the last few days his spirit was bruised and his claustrophobia had increased significantly. He just couldn't be in that house right now. It made everything all too real.

Conflicting emotions roared through Sirius – anger, fear, disappointment, and worry. Sirius was angry at learning last night that it had been the First that had pretended to be his younger brother. How _dare_ that malicious son of a bitch impersonate his dead brother and try to use him! Even after that night, and Willow's attempts at reasoning, a part of Sirius had believed that it really had been Regulus. Perhaps it was because of his inner guilt or maybe because he genuinely missed his kid brother, Sirius had wanted to believe that he had spoken to Reg. To know that it had all been a trick left that small part of his spirit that had felt fulfilled at seeing his brother one last time now feel empty.

Sure, it was maybe good that this First-Reg had not been his Reg. The amount of guilt the First-Reg laid upon Sirius for his death was suffocating. But those statements were just a vocalization of Sirius' deeper thoughts, so no matter what that conversation still felt true.

Besides that, Sirius was becoming seriously worried about Willow and the others. Buffy didn't seem to know a lot but apparently this entity considered itself the 'First Evil', and although the name was less intimidating than 'Lord Voldemort' the story behind the name was not. With such a creature after them who knows what could happen – and who knew what could happen to his Willow.

Already this morning Willow had been attacked by the demonic creature when trying to do a location spell for the First. Seeing her possessed by that evil, seeing that demonic visage spring forth from her body… It tore both anger and worry from Sirius. For the longest time he had held his girlfriend in his arms as she sat shivering from her exposure to the First and Sirius had felt his inner Gryffindor rumble with a protective fury at seeing her in pain. Willow was incredibly strong but she was so fragile at the same time; he hated that the First had the ability to make her so fearful – especially now that she was too afraid to use her magic again.

Even more, Sirius was very worried for Harry's safety. Sometime soon after Halloween Harry's post had arrived and informed Sirius of Harry's entry into the Triwizard Tournament. Luckily, Dumbledore had also mailed him further information. It seemed very clear that someone was after his godson – and someone powerful as well because it is extremely hard to confound the Goblet of Fire. At least Sirius was relieved that Harry had successfully dealt with the dragon in his First Task three weeks ago on the twenty-fourth. He could only hope that the next two tasks would prove as easy for his tenacious and talented godson.

Of course, what Sirius truly hoped was to go back to Hogwarts and help his godson. Yet since he was on the run – with Unspeakables on the trail- he knew it would be hard to work that out… Not to mention he was afraid to leave Willow alone against this First creature. To put it mildly, Sirius was torn trying to decide what to do.

It was raining now and Sirius relished the feeling of the cold spray of water beating upon his body. He sighed and cast away his dark thoughts for a moment as he just allowed himself to feel nothing but the rain soaking through his clothes. After a while thunder rolled a mile away and Buckbeak quaked underneath him. Patting the hippogriff reassuringly, he spoke loudly. "All right, Buckbeak! Time to go home." No sooner where the words out of his mouth than they were plunging downwards, the wind whipping through his loose hair.

Sirius glanced backwards at the dark sky. There was a storm rolling in, alright, but if his instincts were correct, it was going to be a hell of a lot worse than just rain and thunder.

* * *

Willow stood in the living room as she absently rubbed her chest; she still felt dirty inside from the First. Xander and Buffy were talking near the door and she was about to join Anya and Dawn on the couch when Sirius walked into the room. It was raining outside but he looked dry – must be nice to be a wizard, able to do magic all the time.

She mentally berated herself for the idle thought. Willow tried not to, but sometimes she couldn't prevent the envy she felt towards Sirius and his powers. He was able to use magic for everything without any negative consequences. No turning into a dark magic user, no being possessed by the First for using a simple location spell – it really wasn't fair!

Taking a deep breath and pushing back those thoughts, she smiled at Sirius. "Good ride?"

Smiling, he nodded and walked behind her; wrapping his arms around her. After her experience earlier, she was still feeling shaky and the feel of his strength surrounding her made everything – even if momentarily – feel better.

"Buckbeak was being a bit of a sissy and wouldn't fly close to the lightning, but it was alright otherwise," he informed her in an amused tone.

Turning her head slightly she stared at him in bewilderment. "What? You wanted to fly into lightning? Are you crazy?"

He smirked. "I'm not mad, love. I didn't say that I wanted to fly _into_ the lightning, just wanted to take a closer look-see."

Willow growled and turned away from him. "Oh, honestly," she muttered in an annoyed tone. Sirius was one of the craziest – sorry, _maddening_ – people that she had ever met…and sometimes he reminded her of her friends. Like Xander, he was full of jokes and sarcasm, like Buffy he was brave and was not in favor of planning before jumping into danger (like she was currently arguing in favor of), and like Dawn he was positively reckless. She was at least happy that he wasn't like Anya in any way she knew yet – it would be embarrassing to date someone that spoke about sex all the time.

Gnawing her lip, suddenly her mind drifted at that thought. Two and a half months of dating Sirius and they still had not engaged in any clothes off experiences. He still slept on the living room couch – transfigured into a bed at night – and she was surprised about his lack of move making. A while ago they had gone into that whole 'exes' conversation and Willow had been taken aback at his sheer number of exes. Of course, none of them had been serious, but he had gotten some serious action back in the day… So a part of her couldn't help but to start to question why he hadn't tried to have sex with her yet.

Sure, they had discussed it and said they would wait until she was ready – especially after last month when Tara – or rather, the First pretending to be Tara – stirred up a lot of bad memories. But dang it – Willow was feeling pretty ready now!

Her attention was drawn to Xander and Buffy arguing about her game plan.

Buffy sighed as she walked towards the door. "It's out there. It's hurting my friends. I'll find it."

She opened the door to leave and Willow jumped when she saw Giles standing there.

"Buffy," he stated in his oh-so-proper British way.

"Giles." Buffy stepped forward to hug him but a fair-skinned girl with long, curly brown hair walked through the door.

"Nice place. Bit of a mess," she observed in an accent. British, Willow decided, but different from Giles' and Sirius'.

A second slayer with long light brown hair just smiled as she walked past.

This is a slayer?" A third girl with a creamy caramel complexion and wide, dark eyes smirked as she walked through next. The girl was very beautiful and her hips swayed slightly when she walked. She appeared older than the first two but slightly younger than Willow.

A fourth, and younger girl, walked through next holding a wand. She had white blond hair that fell in soft waves around her face and great blue eyes blinked at them lazily. "Oh, hello," she said in a soft accented voice. "Did you know that you've got mifflepops living in your bushes? You might want to call an exterminator; they're known to eat plants quicker than a locust, depending on the alignment of the stars."

Silence greeted this bizarre suggestion as the girl just smiled dreamily and walked further into the room.

"Mifflepops?" Buffy asked in a confused voice.

Giles just smiled and walked inside after a slight shrug.

"Don't worry about the mifflepops," added a new male voice. "From what I read, they died out a millennia ago."

A man wearing shabby wizarding robes with thick light brown hair that hung slightly over his ears walked in behind Giles. A scar lined his cheek and his face looked drawn with exhaustion but he smiled kindly at everyone in the room. He was handsome in a quiet way – not overtly so like Sirius but he imbued a sense of warmth and kindness that brought out the best in his outer looks.

Willow felt Sirius stiffen behind her. "Remus!" he shouted in a mixture of excitement coupled with a small amount of confusion.

His dark brown eyes widened considerably as he noticed Sirius holding onto the red-haired woman. "Come now, Padfoot old friend, you didn't think that I'd let you fight an apocalypse on your own, did you now? Someone had to make sure to keep you in line," he joked in an easy manner – the kind that signified they had known each other for a long time.

Releasing Willow, Sirius strode quickly to the door and embraced Remus tightly. "Bloody hell, I've missed ya Moony."

Buffy held up one hand like she was back in a high school classroom. "Wait a second" Buffy she asked slowly as her eyes darted towards Giles in suspicion. "What apocalypse?"

* * *

A/N:

So now the Summers household has 3 witches and 2 wizards living in it… *grins*

And Remus & Luna won't be the last. I'm taking suggestions for any HP people that you would like to see in Sunnydale – I know who will be coming but there is an open spot on that specific mission as well :)

Thank you for reading!!

Luna


	40. If Our Lives Were a Drinking Game…

If Our Lives Were a Drinking Game…

A/N:  
Some dialogue was taken from the 'Bring On the Night' episode – there really was no way to avoid a bit of it – so thank you to the following site for assisting me: .com/buffy/transcripts/132_

Thanks to everyone for reviewing!

Buffy held up one hand like she was back in a high school classroom. "Wait a second," she asked slowly as her eyes darted towards Giles in suspicion. "What apocalypse?"

Pulling off his glasses and absent-mindedly cleaning them with his soft grey sweater, Giles responded in a wry voice. "Yes, that's why I'm here actually. It appears that we have a slight apocalypse."

Xander was the first one to break the shocked silence. "Wow, if our lives were a drinking game imagine how quick we'd get drunk every time Sunnydale had an apocalypse," he commented in strained amusement.

"Ooh, not to mention we could do shots every time we slayed a vamp," Buffy added jokingly.

Willow giggled. "And take a shot and do an eye roll every time Dawn gets kidnapped." The Scoobies all laughed – except for Dawn of course.

"Oh yes, and perhaps we could finish off a whole bottle every time one of us tried to kill another one of us," Anya said in a cheerful and matter-of-fact voice.

"Well, as long as it's that good stuff and not the $4 bottle of Vodka that people make their Jello shots with," Dawn mentioned with a bright smile

Everyone in the room paused and stared at Dawn in surprise. "What?" she shrugged. "I'm not saying I've ever done it or even want to turn into Cavewoman Buffy, but I do watch cable."

"Uh-huh," Buffy assessed with a skeptical look.

"I say, you are all rather taking this rather well," observed a baffled Giles. "I'll have you know that this isn't a rather lame demon organization, like the Sisterhood of Jhe-"

"-Wait, the teenagers with the pants? Those were evil pants?" Dawn asked as her face scrunched up in confusion.

"No," Giles practically growled, annoyed at being interrupted during the middle of an important life-changing conversation.

"Remember Dawnie, those were the chick demons who tried to end the world while I saved everyone from explosive-happy zombies?" reminded a smiling Xander – more than happy to remember that day for a couple of reasons.

"Oh yeah," Dawn nodded.

"As I was _saying_," Giles continued in a stern voice. "This is far worse. The First Evil is trying to destroy the world." He paused significantly and was confounded by his practically-adopted children's mere casual shrugs.

"Yeah, we figured that out last night actually. Got a little visit from those Harbingers guys. They attacked us and kidnapped Spike," Buffy explained.

Giles frowned. "That's rather odd, I do wonder why they want him?" he mused out loud. "You see, what the First wants is to destroy the Slayer line, as well as the Watchers' Council."

Buffy's eyes widened and she shared a concerned look with Xander and Willow, who were now seated next to Anya on the couch. Meanwhile Dawn observed the girls standing against the wall and the two wizards watched in surprise as they stood off to the side of a passed out Andrew, who was still gagged and bound in a chair.

"Slayers? They're after me? And Faith?" Buffy's voice had lowered and the unspoken threat lay in her tone.

"Yes. But first they are after the potential slayers. These girls have all been identified through magical means as potential slayers who may be blessed with-"

"-Or cursed," Buffy added in a bitter tone as she eyed the girls with curiosity.

Giles threw her an admonishing look that clearly told her to watch her words in front of the girls before he continued. "-The power to become the slayer. There were many like them all over the world, but now there's just a handful – and they're all on their way to Sunnydale."

Buffy sat gingerly in an armchair as memories of her dreams flashed through her eyes. "The others were murdered," she realized in a sad voice.

Giles nodded. "In cold blood. As well as their watchers. We always feared that this day would come, when there'd be an attack against not just an individual slayer, but against the whole line.

"The First. That's what it wants," Buffy confirmed out loud in astonishment.

"Yes, to erase all the slayers in training and their watchers along with their methods."

"And then Faith, and then me. And with all the potentials gone and no way of making another, it's the end. No more slayer. Ever."

Sirius settled into an armchair as he listened to Giles explain about the First, the Bringers, and how they had blown up the Watchers' Council. He found himself, on one hand, ridiculously happy that Moony was here. On the other hand, all this information about the First was filling him with dread. After Giles explained the plan – that all the potential slayers were coming to Sunnydale – one of the girls scoffed out loud as she strode to the center of the room.

"That's it? That's the plan? I don't see how one person, even a slayer, could protect us. I saw what those bringer guys can do. They tore apart my watcher. We don't have a chance."

"Of course we'll use all our resources—"Giles began.

"And if this thing is the root of all evil, isn't the hellmouth its number one vacation spot? I mean, don't you think we should be hiding our asses on the other side of the globe rather than sitting here begging to be slashed open like all those other girls?" she added snidely.

Sirius found himself already disliking this outspoken girl. Never mind that he was wondering the same thing, but Merlin was she a brat about it.

Apparently he wasn't the only one to think so.

"Kennedy!" cried out Annabelle in horror.

Buffy stood up and looked at them solemnly. "No, she's not wrong. We need more muscle. That's why we need to find Spike."

"Yeah, he'll help. You know, if he's not crazy or off killing people or dead. Or, you know, all of the above," Anya commented dryly.

Sirius sat back on the couch as he gestured for Remus to join him as everyone began going their separate ways. Right now Buffy and Giles were on their way to the First's hideout and everyone else was in the kitchen– the four potential slayers Luna, Kennedy, Annabelle, and Molly with Dawn, Anya, Willow and Xander.

"So Moony, not that that I'm not excited to have you here, but why the hell are you here?" Sirius asked with drawn eyebrows. "Last I heard from you, you were just getting that bookstore assistant position."

Remus sighed and shrugged heavily. "Just got and just loss, I'm afraid. The owner's daughter, when she found out that I was a werewolf, forbid her two young daughters from visiting their grandfather at the store anymore. Since they otherwise visited every afternoon while their mum worked, he had to let me got."

"Bloody idiot," Sirius growled.

Remus' face appeared calm but Sirius knew his good friend well enough to tell that even now – after all these years of discrimination – it still wounded Remus to be treated so callously in society. "It's just how it is, Padfoot."

"Whatever Moony. You're bloody brilliant. I think only Lily surpassed you in school. The Wizarding world should be begging you to work for them," he disagreed heatedly. Sirius despised seeing his friends treated wrongly and if it was up to him he'd happily throttle the neck of every 'half-breed' hating Ministry official.

Waving a hand through the air, Remus ended the discussion. "Old news, Sirius," he said breezily – once again trying to pretend it didn't bother him. But he smiled slightly and Sirius knew that he appreciated Sirius' words.

"Alright then, how did you get in touch with Giles? And why in the bloody hell didn't you owl me beforehand?"

Remus chuckled softly. "Ah, as always all roads lead back to Dumbledore."

Raising an eyebrow, Sirius asked, "Indeed?"

"Luna Lovegood, she's a year under Harry and a Ravenclaw, was attacked by those Bringers outside Hogwarts. Actually," a smile played on his lips, "It was Harry, Hermione, and Ron who were with her and incidentally save her. Those three do find themselves in trouble more often than I can count," he commented as he shook his head in amusement.

"What?" Sirius gasped. "Harry never told me this? Those knife-wielding bastards attacked them?"

"Attacked Luna," Remus corrected. "And he likely didn't tell you because Dumbledore asked him not to mention anything. If such a post were ever intercepted then they feared the Ministry delving into Watcher Council business. Plus, since Rupert was contacted and agreed to take Luna into his care – and into Sunnydale – they especially didn't want to give the Ministry yet another excuse to examine this place further."

"Makes sense," Sirius agreed half-heartedly – although in all honesty he was a bit irked to be left out. Seems Dumbledore hadn't changed the mysterious way that he liked to do business in the last thirteen years.

"And I came here at the request of Dumbledore to assist Rupert and provide some magical assistance. All this is done strictly without the Ministry's knowledge, of course, but it was thought that Luna needed a wizard tutor to help continue her magical studies. Seeing that Giles also managed to release a small amount of Council assets – although he assured me it wasn't stealing," Remus added with twinkling eyes, "he's able to pay me so I am no longer unemployed."

Sirius grinned. "That's great! So you'll be tutoring Luna while you're here?" Silently Sirius also added how Remus would also assist Sirius in a new round of pranks. Since the shopping spree incident, he and Buffy had kept up the minor prank war and while Xander was fun to plot with, he needed his evil genius werewolf buddy.

"Originally, yes. But since coming to America we discovered that another of the potentials was a witch. While she has completed her studies and is eighteen, her father has requested that I continue to assist her in advancing her skills as well."

"Wait a moment," Sirius interrupted as he tried to think of the other three girls. "Who's the other witch?"

Willow loaded some sheets and blankets into her arms as she tried to figure out where everyone was going to sleep tonight. Besides the potentials it had already been decided that Anya and Xander would stay here as well – they didn't want anyone on their own with the Big Bad out for blood.

"Hey there," a sweet voice whispered behind her ear, softly blowing a few stray tendrils of hair.

Willow jumped and dropped her linens in the process. "Sorry, jumpy these days," she explained with and embarrassed smile.

Her lips curled into a wide smile. "Yeah, I suppose knife-wielding assassins would do that to a person." She bent down to pick up the linens and then placed them back into Willow's arms. And was it just her or did Kennedy's hand purposely caress hers as she set the items in her arms?

"Ah, yeah," she mumbled, feeling a bit off-put by the maybe accidental and maybe not accidental touching. "Sorry, by the way."

"For what?"

"Your watcher, getting killed by those guys." Kennedy's eyes darkened and something passed through her eyes – guilt maybe? Anger?

"Yeah, thanks," she responded. Her gaze lowered at the statement and she crossed her arms. "It was pretty ugly. I still," her voice caught at the word. "I still miss him," she finished sadly. "He was my watcher since I was old enough to walk. Can't believe he's gone."

Willow felt a deep amount of sympathy towards the girl. After all, she knew what it was like to lose people she loved. Jesse, Tara, Buffy (never for long, but long enough) – it always hurt. Setting the linens on a side table she spontaneously pulled the other girl into a tight hug. "It'll get easier," she mumbled softly. "Trust me, I know."

The girl stiffened at the contact but her body quickly softened as she wound her arms around Willow and burrowed her head into the crook of her neck. Kennedy felt soft – her skin, her hair, her curves. Willow never would have expected the outspoken girl from earlier to act so vulnerable now. It was almost nice, actually, to be holding a woman – who wasn't Dawn or Buffy of course – for a moment. '_Very nice_,' Willow thought.

Then she abruptly ended the hug as she realized her thoughts were venturing into naughty, bad, and _so_ not of the good territory. Clutching the linens to her chest, Willow smiled nervously. "I better go set up everyone's beds," she excused herself as she walked towards the living room.

"Oh, great. I can help! What do you need to figure out?" Kennedy asked eagerly with bright brown eyes.

Willow smiled at Sirius' glance as she walked in on him talking with Remus and then she grinned at the peculiar Luna girl who was staring at their pictures – Willow bet the girl was confused by their non-moving Muggle format.

"Okay, well Remus, Sirius, and Xander will stay in the living room. Oh, and Giles too I guess," she frowned. That was a lot of people. "Ah, Anya is crashing in Dawn's room now. So, um, maybe we can also fit Luna down here with Annabelle and Molly can stay in Dawn's room-"

"Not if Dawn actually wants to sleep," Kennedy grinned. "Molly'll talk her ear off."

"Ok then, Molly down here, you with Dawn, and Annabelle in my room," Willow sighed.

"Bad idea. Annabelle snores."

Willow shook her head – she was getting a headache. Giving up, she handed the sheets to Kennedy. "You wanna do the sleeping arrangements?"

"Ok. You, uh, better not hog the covers," she grinned flirtatiously.

Blanching at Kennedy's remark, Willow found herself speechless. Wait, Kennedy was gay? Hold on – Kennedy was hitting on _her_?

It was probably for the best that Willow did not turn around at that moment. Otherwise she would have seen Remus glance nervously at Sirius whose eyes were glittering with anger as he stared in shock at the potential slayer hitting on his girlfriend.

"Uh, um, ah, no, that's okay," Willow stuttered awkwardly. "Um, really not into the sharing of the covers or sharing of anything else – except with my boyfriend."

Kennedy's coffee brown eyes widened in surprise. "Oh, I had no idea," she apologized. Seeing Sirius' furious look she tossed Willow a sultry wink and a sly smile. "Maybe he likes to watch?"

Remus immediately began choking on his tea and Willow felt all the color drain from her face. "What?" she asked appallingly.

"No, I don't like to watch, nor do I bloody like to share," Sirius growled; one hand already clutching his wand in his pocket. He eyed the obnoxious potential slayer and had a good mind to hex her for even suggesting it. Merlin's beard! Perhaps in his younger days he would have enjoyed such an offer but Sirius was committed to Willow and her alone. If this little tart tried to feel up his girlfriend she was going to regret it.

Willow glanced back at Sirius; she had almost forgotten that he was there. Goddess, this was an awkward moment.

"Shame," Kennedy pouted in such a way that Willow could not but help she had very nice lips.

"Excuse me, but I couldn't help but overhear," Luna's voice floated through the air.

Willow's eyes widened – oh goddess, please tell her that the thirteen year old girl was not going to comment on Kennedy's threesome proposition!

"It seems we _do_ have a lot of people who are living in this house now." Her wide oceanic eyes rolled around the room as she counted. "Twelve, I suppose. My friend Ginny Weasley has eight people living in her home and they make do with enchanting their home to fit more people – as do plenty of other wizarding establishments. Perhaps we could do such a thing here." She smiled brightly at the idea and folded her hands in front of her waist.

Remus sat up straight and nodded slowly. "Yes, that could be possible. It would take a bit of work but between the four of us and Willow, but I bet we can get it done in the next few days. Of course," he said more so to himself, "I'd have to owl for an appropriate spell book and we may need some Muggle measuring tools to help us map this out."

"Xander does construction, he could help with that. But what did you mean by the four of you?" Willow asked in a puzzled voice.

Gesturing towards Kennedy, Remus replied. "Kennedy and Luna are both witches. Kennedy has recently completed her formal education but I will be assisting with her further studies, and of course with Luna's while I am here."

Willow looked at the potential slayer in surprise. "You're a witch?"

Smirking, Kennedy nodded. "Yes - and a damn good one at that. Daddy always made sure I had the best tutors that Galleons could buy." Then she frowned in Remus' direction. "And never mind what my father says, I do _not_ need further lessons. Not to mention I'm bloody of age and don't need to follow his orders."

"Oh, are you British too?" Luna asked dreamily. "That's lovely; I thought you were from the east coast."

"Huh?" Kennedy stilled for a moment before she rolled her eyes. "No, born and bred here. But Daddy took me on lots of trips and I'm fluent in a dozen different languages – the curse word slang is the most fun to learn. The Isles are quite lovely though and I like traveling there the best."

"Oh really? How nice. My father likes to take me on trips too – although usually it's to search for a unique mystical animal. Where have you all gone?"

As Luna drew Kennedy into a conversation about world destinations, Willow sidled over to Sirius and Remus. "Hi," she greeted Remus. "I don't think we really got a chance to meet, what with all the hungry teenage girls running amuck."

"Willow, it's so nice to meet you – finally," he added with a grin directed at Sirius. "Sirius hasn't sent many messages my way but he did mention your beauty. I must say, I'm glad he didn't listen to my advice."

Arranging herself comfortably next to Sirius, she glanced at Remus in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Ah," shrugged with an embarrassed smile on his face." I believe I was the one who told him about your dark past and had advised Sirius to stay away from you – back before you both escaped Hogwarts. Of course," he quickly added, "I realize now that I was completely wrong – my apologies."

Patting his arm, she smiled. "It's alright. I did use to be scary."

"Used to be?" Sirius shook his head. "Obviously woman you don't realize how scary you can be sometimes," he laughed.

"What on earth are you talking about?" she scoffed and lightly smacked the hand that was curled around her waist.

"I do believe just last week you hung me upside down from a tree and left me there for ten minutes!" he reminded her with a youthful grin on his face.

"Well, yeah! You tried to hand me a frog that you found in the backyard!" she countered hotly, but her eyes were warm with mirth.

He shrugged grinned innocently. "How was I supposed to know you had frog fear? After all, aren't you supposed to love all the creatures of the goddess?"

Willow just glared in response.

"Frog fear?" Remus asked amidst a few chuckles. It amused him to see Sirius banter with this woman – and it pleased him as well. Sirius above everyone he knew was owed happiness from what he experienced in Azkaban and Remus enjoyed seeing his friend happy with his red-haired witch. Not to mention, the three and a half month stay in Sunnydale had really done wonders for Padfoot. He looked completely different from the last time Remus had seen him – the night of Peter Pettigrew's escape. Back then he was thin, his face concave, and his eyes dark and desperate. Now Sirius' face looked fuller, slight muscle showed through the sleeves of his shirt, and his eyes were bright with happiness.

"I know, right Moony? Of all things and she's afraid of frogs," Sirius chuckled. "Ouch," he moaned when Willow smacked his stomach.

"Oh you just have a can of Hush-Up Now," she chided. "Besides, in my world what _would_ make sense to scare the bejesus out of me? Vampires? Zombies? Demons? Werewolves?" she snorted. "Please."

Remus stiffened and Sirius smiled encouragingly at him. "Wait, you mean that you are not afraid of werewolves?" he asked cautiously.

Willow laughed – of all things she _laughed_. "No, why should I be? Most of the time they're just like you and me. Sure, hairy and smelly three nights out of the month, but that's no big – especially if you own a tranquilizer gun."

Eyes widening, a bout of nervous and surprised laughter escaped his lips. "Wait, you think werewolves are just like me and you?" he asked, so surprised to meet someone who didn't judge his darker nature in a negative sense.

"She dated one for a year and a half, Moony," Sirius explained.

Willow's eyes narrowed and she wondered what was with the sudden emphasis on werewolves. "Why? Do you not like them?"

Oh Merlin, was _that_ a tough question to answer for Remus. But he decided to just keep it simple. "I _am_ a werewolf, Willow."

"Oh. Oh!" She turned to Sirius. "You told me one of your friends growing up was a werewolf but you never said who!"

Sirius shrugged. "Things may be crazy now, but I had hoped that someday – although I did not expect it to be so soon – that you would meet Remus. Besides, it wasn't my secret to tell."

"Thanks Padfoot," Remus grinned.

"'Course Moony," Sirius smiled back.

"Well being a werewolf is not big deal here at the Summers household," Willow explained. "We've got quite the freak show already and it's always nice to have our token werewolf," she joked.

Remus could only smile and nod at her easy acceptance. Suddenly he was starting to understand just why Sirius looked so happy after living in Sunnydale – this was the kind of environment he could get used to.

Later that evening, Willow led Sirius by the hand into her bedroom and tried to fight back her nervousness. She sat down and unnecessarily smoothed down her skirt.

"Willow? You said you wanted to talk?" Sirius asked, his grey eyes looking deep into hers.

"Well, I've been thinking-"

"-Uh-oh, that's never a good thing," he joked.

"_Trying_ to be _serious_ here," she glared.

"Actually," he began self-importantly with a raised finger, but Willow cut him off by slapping her fingertips against his mouth. She rolled her eyes at the realization of her mistake and gave him a dirty look again.

"Sorry," he grinned and fluttered his eyelashes comically. "Forgive me?"

Willow rolled her eyes again, but a smile briefly escaped. Seeing that as a sign of her forgiveness, Sirius planted a light kiss on her lips.

"Sorry, I'm having a hard time not exploding with energy today. You have no idea how amazing it is to have Moony back. We've only seen each other once and having him around makes things feel more like home," he explained seriously.

Cupping his cheek, she smiled sweetly at him. "I'm glad he's here then, for you. Although, you're not going to forget about me now that you have you best friend here, are you?" she teased.

Gifting her with his trademark lopsided grin, he shook his head. "Blimey, I love Moony but my tastes fall more to the beautiful, red-haired, luscious female types."

"Beautiful? Luscious?" Willow pretended to look around. "Who is she? I'll hex her good and proper – as you would say."

Letting out a barking laugh, Sirius grabbed Willow and pulled her into his lap. "I don't know if you should mess with her. She's quite the witch. Amazingly good at snogging, as well."

"Really?" she drawled with an arched brow.

"Really," he confirmed before cupping her cheeks and lowering his head to capture her lips in a sweet kiss. Her body automatically responded and pressed herself closer to him as his hand wound through her hair. Their kiss went on for several minutes before their lips departed and they gasped for air.

"Don't think I'll ever get tired of kissing you," he murmured as he trailed a finger down her jaw line.

"Me either," she smiled.

"What is it you wanted to talk to me about?" he asked after a moment of peaceful silence.

"Oh." Willow sat up straighter and she began to feel nervous again. "Well, you know, after trying to figure out the sleeping arrangements, everything is kinda crazy. And even though you and Remus are going to figure out how to magic us a mansion, there's still going to be a while of you sleeping downstairs. Obviously, it's pretty crowded down there. And chaotic. And, well, I thought that maybe you would prefer to sleep here. With me." Her eyes darted around as she spoke before finally connecting with his cautiously.

Sirius' eyes widened considerably as he took in her statement. "You want me to move in with you?" he asked in surprise.

"Well, yeah. Um, I mean, technically you do sorta live with me – in the same house anyways. And I figure you already take up some dresser space. And it would be kind of selfish for me take this big room and big bed all for myself. And obviously I don't want to share with anyone else…" she trailed off helplessly, feeling so nervous for taking this next step in their relationship.

"Yeah, I don't want you to share with anyone else," he agreed; eyes darkening at the memory of Kennedy's earlier words. Then he smiled as he realized Willow wanted him – and only him. And now she wanted him in her bedroom… Which regardless of what they did or did not do between the sheets, Sirius would enjoy just being with her at night.

"I'd love to," he agreed simply as he pulled her into a deep kiss that left her dazed.

"Oh," she grinned stupidly. "Good then."

A/N:  
In my author notes in the preceding chapter I mentioned having 3 witches and 2 wizards… lol I was very surprised that no one called me out on that, "Hey but there's only Willow and Luna in the witch department" *chuckles evilly* Just tryin' to put my own little spin on things ;)

Hope you enjoyed the lil Scooby moment at the beginning – their banter is oh so fun to write :) And depending on if you like Kennedy (do you? Lol does anyone?) you may or may not hate her flirtatious attempts – but she does make things more interesting ;)

-LOL... As for the drinking game... I think I tried that once... It was fun! ...Or maybe it was fun for me because I am such a Buffy dork lol ;)

-The episode referenced was The Zeppo (where they dealt with that sisterhood group)

-The 'evil pants' reference is to the Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants movies and books


	41. Just Like Riding a Bike

**Chapter 41: Just Like Riding a Bike**

**THIS CHAPTER IS RATED FR21 FOR SEXUAL CONTENT**

**Author Notes:**

Dearest Readers,

Thank you all for the feedback regarding ratings. This will most likely be the only FR21 scene in the story which is why I decided to up the rating on this chapter only. The first part is an Anya and Willow scene before it heads into the Willow/Sirius scene. I will leave large spaces between the scenes so you may choose to skip the FR21 stuff – And if you do so, you won't get lost in the story. There is a major relationship development part but I will summarize what happened in my end Author Notes if you decide to skip that but still want to gist of what they said.

This chapter just sort of flowed – I did not mean for it to be full of loving time goodness but it is and I hope no one decides to stop reading just because of it. More so, I hope you will enjoy this addition to the story :) It's a first for me, so I would really appreciate feedback.

Thank you for being some of the best darn readers on TtH!

Luna

PS: Thanks to DeepBlueSea for her feedback!

PSS: An extremely special THANK YOU to a href=" . " borgrabbit /a for creating such a BE-A-U-tiful piece of fan art that fits with this chapter extremely well!!!! Oh joy! :D

img src==".com/albums/af256/Luna_Del_Cielo/?action=view¤t;=Willow-Sirius_" target="_blank"img src=".com/albums/af256/Luna_Del_Cielo/Willow-Sirius_" border="0" alt="Willow,Sirius Black"/a

Willow was ruffling through her top dresser drawer when she heard Anya chuckling behind her. Surprised that she wasn't alone in her bedroom – officially her and Sirius' bedroom now – Willow thrust her garments back into the drawer and turned with a guilty expression.

"Anya!" she squeaked nervously. "Hi. What are you doing?"

"I overheard Sirius telling Remus that he didn't need a spot saved for him in the living room because he was moving into your room." She smiled. "So I came to congratulate you on finally getting to have sex. Congratulations!"

"Anya!" Willow hissed as she quickly shut the door behind Anya. "Not so loud! There are kids out there, not to mention there has been no talk of having sex yet."

"Oh?" Anya's eyes darted towards the open dresser. "So you weren't just rifling through your panty drawer to find some sexy underthing that Sirius will just be ripping off anyways?"

"I – wait, how did you know?" Willow asked in bewilderment.

"Isn't it common for panties to be placed in the top drawer?" Anya asked in confusion. "Since you were all frantic looking and reaching in there, I assumed."

"Um, yeah," Willow informed her. From now on she should really learn to start shutting her bedroom door! There were already too many people in this house sneaking around. "But, um, I'm not sure if we will be having sex. Tonight, that is."

Anya's forehead wrinkled in confusion. "But don't you want to have sex with him?"

"Yes." After thinking about it for another moment she altered her answer. "Definitely yes."

"Great!" Anya beamed. "Then you will have sex tonight. Excellent news."

"Anya! I mean, I know I want to, but I don't know if he does. I mean, he hasn't tried anything…" Willow trailed off uncertainly.

Rolling her eyes, Anya laughed. "Oh, silly former lesbian Willow. Don't you know that men _always_ want to have sex? Besides that, it's disgustingly obvious how head over heels Sirius is for you. He's older and seems to be a nice fellow, so he's probably just playing the gentleman."

"Oh." Willow pondered on Anya's words and realized that she was probably right. "But then, how do I get him to stop being a gentleman?"

Anya grinned wickedly. "Well now, _that_ is an easy question to answer."

Sirius Black was feeling quite proud of himself at the moment. The old Sirius Black – the ultimate ladies man and perpetually single – would never have moved in with a woman. Of course, technically he had been living with Willow – as in sharing the same house – since he arrived in Sunnydale over three months ago but tonight he was moving into her room.

Him. Willow. One Room. One bed.

He was getting heated up just thinking about it.

However, Sirius wasn't sure if they were at that stage of their relationship yet. Willow had needed time to ease into their relationship regarding physical intimacy, which he understood since she had still been dealing with Tara's death. Sirius, on the other hand, had been _more_ than ready and was used to taking lots of cold showers by now.

Bloody hell, he had been locked up for twelve years and on the run for one – Merlin knows he was dying for a good shag.

But Willow was special – so he would wait.

Even if it meant sharing her bed fully clothed.

Walking into Willow's bedroom – _their_ bedroom now – he took off his shoes and lay down, tired after a long day. As he stretched his arm struck something and he quickly snatched the item for inspection. It was a white box wrapped with a red bow and his name was written in a loopy scrawl on top.

Grinning, he was surprised to see that Willow had gotten him a gift. The door squeaked open and he saw his girl walk in wearing a mid-length, silky green robe.

"Hey," he breathed softly, his body more than ever aware of her barely clothed presence.

"Hey yourself," she answered with an amused smile. "Have you opened your present yet?"

"I was just about to," he responded with a wink. His fingers slid the ribbon off and he opened the box. He frowned at the contents – a paper tag.

"What's this?" he asked suspiciously, as he held up the tag with his thumb and forefinger.

"Shopping tag," she informed him with a mischievous smile.

He raised an eyebrow questioningly. "You gave me a shopping tag?" he asked dryly.

Willow's hips swayed as she walked towards him suggestively. "Not quite," she grinned.

Slowly she undid the sash and pushed the robe off. Sirius gawked at the revealing sight of her clothed in only a black laced teddy that dipped so low her now protruding nipples were almost revealed. The teddy flared out right below her hips and the see-through material showcased delicate black panties hiding underneath.

"This is your present," she added with a knowing smile. When he didn't immediately respond a shadow of worry passed fleetingly across her face. "Likey?"

His eyes dragged up from her delicate curves to her eyes and he dumbly shook his head. "Likey much," he rasped.

Vaulting off the bed he picked her up into his arms and gave her a passionate, deep kiss that expressed all his unsaid desire. Stumbling over to the bed, he threw them both on top of it as he continued the kiss, breaking away only to rip off his shirt.

"Likey very much," he growled as his hands wandered to caress her sweet, petite breasts through the thin lace. A soft moan rolled through her at his light touch and Sirius forced himself to pull back for a moment as he looked into her green eyes questioningly.

"Willow, are you sure? I don't want you to think you have to just because I'm sleeping in here. I can wait longer, if you need me to. Besides," he grinned and shrugged, "with all these teenagers using all the hot water anyways cold showers are practically a requirement of living here."

Yes, Sirius could wait longer, if she needed him to. But bloody hell, he really, _really_ hoped not.

Especially when she was looking at him with pouty lips swollen from their kiss and her breathing had her breasts rising up and down temptingly.

A hand gently cupped his face; fingers tapping soothingly against him. "Sirius, I've been ready. And now that you have very gentlemanly given me a way out, I think I want you even more now."

"Oh, thank Merlin," he sighed in a relieved tone as he winked at her.

She playfully swatted his arm. "Hush, you. Now," she said, changing direction, "I'm going to need you to kiss me, mister."

"Oh, I'll give you more than that," he whispered suggestively as his head lowered.

"Mmm, good," she said as his mouth pressed against hers.

Their kiss was different than their previous ones – because this time they both knew what would come afterwards. His tongue plunged into her mouth and she sensually stroked it with her own. Sirius felt his cock twitch at the realization that soon that tongue could be stroking another part of him. That thought only spurred him on to roll his thumb in lazy circles around her nipple before finally lightly twisting it.

Willow gasped in his mouth at the touch and she wrapped one leg around his waist in an unconscious desire to have every part of her body surrounded by him. His erection pressed against her stomach and she writhed at the feeling. It had been so long since she had been with a man – three years – and she had forgotten how _good_ that hardness felt against her.

Perhaps it was cumulative of all of Sirius' traits that she had come to enjoy because he was so new and different. He was simply a real man – quite a bit older than her – rugged with wild hair and a mustache, life experiences that made him relate to the darkness in her, and he imbued a certain strength that she always felt when he wrapped his arms around her – like now. Sirius made her feel safe; made her feel special.

As he twisted slightly she felt his hardness brush up against her core and her hips bucked. She groaned slightly in sheer desire of having him so close yet not quite inside her. Sirius gave her a lust-filled stare as he smiled in that confident, mischievous way of his.

"Not yet, love. I've been waiting for this moment for a long time and I'm going to enjoy every bit of your body first, before I take you," he informed her, like a starving man presented with a buffet and wanting to try a bit of everything.

'_Before I take you'_. Willow shivered at that primitive language that only increased the flood of liquid spilling into her silk panties.

"I suppose it has been thirteen years you've been waiting," she gasped when he began slowly sucking her fingers – _Goddess_, who knew that something as simple as that action would have her nerve endings shooting off like this?

He paused in his movements and gave her a serious look; his grey eyes expressive with emotion. "Not thirteen years, Willow. I've been waiting all my life for someone like you – I just don't think I realized what I was waiting for until I stumbled into your cottage."

Willow's breathing sped up as his words washed over her. She knew his past – knew he was a bit of a womanizer when he was her age and was never interested in commitment. For him to say something like that – to know he valued her _that_ much – was something she was surprised at.

Her hand curled tightly around a thick tendril of his midnight hair. "Sirius, I love you," she breathed out – without realizing exactly what she was saying. Her eyes widened at the blunt, honest statement and her teeth bit down into the soft flesh of her bottom lip as she suddenly realized how exposed she was – both physically and emotionally.

Sirius looked equally surprised at her statement and a shadow crossed his face briefly before he cast away the darker look. He began to speak but she held up her hand.

"No, please, you don't have to say anything," she smiled nervously – feeling more scared than ever that she had spoken those three words too soon.

Nodding sagely, he trailed a finger down from her brow to her luscious lips. "Willow, I've never said those words to a woman before. And I always promised myself I wouldn't unless it was absolutely true."

Her stomach clenched painfully as she nodded jerkily. "Of course," she began to agree quickly. "I wouldn't want you to say it just because, you know, I said it. 'Cause I hear those commercials about the danger of peer pressure and all, so-"

"I love you."

"- don't feel like you have to…" Her forehead wrinkled in thought. "Wait, what did you say?" she asked, feeling an odd combination of alarm, hope, and pure blissful satisfaction.

A smile lit up his face, making him appear much younger than he was. "I love you."

"You do?" A slow grin worked its way onto her face.

"I." Sirius kissed the space in between her breasts. "Love." Moving upwards he kissed the pulse at the side of her neck. "You." Now his mouth claimed hers in a sweet kiss that soon became more aggressive as their desire grew greater.

He pulled back and locked eyes with her while they both panted from the extended kiss. "Now, in case your subjective hearing has returned, I will continue to tell you I love you – through more physical means. Likey?" he asked with a flirtatious smile that had his eyes twinkling with mirth.

"Likey much," she sighed in pleasure.

His attention turned towards her breasts and suddenly – like magic – her black lace teddy was flung across the room… Almost made her wonder if he had a nonverbal spell for such a move…

Grey eyes gave her chest an appreciative look that made her feel incredibly sexy. When a woman has small breasts she always wonders if her lover would find them to be satisfactory – but as he began to feast hungrily on one breast and his fingers worked on the other, Willow knew that Sirius was quite satisfied with her body.

Nimble fingers ran through his hair as she simply laid there and took in the ripples of pleasure that every stroke of his tongue, nibble of his teeth, and sucking of his lips produced within her. As his mouth worked his way down the tender flesh of her stomach, her hands clutched the sheets on either side of her in preparation.

"Oh my goddess, Sirius I need you_ now_," she moaned as his tongue dug below the top of her panties.

His eyes captured her own as he winked. "In due time, love."

A moan of sexual frustration escaped her lips as his mouth moved away from her panties.

"Are you getting me back for all your cold showers?" she asked him in mock-anger.

Flashing her an innocent smile, he shook his head. "Of course not, Willow." His hands cupped her breasts as he leaned forward and kissed her salaciously. Sirius pulled back only slightly, so that when he spoke his lips grazed against hers.

"It's just that I intend to shag you good and proper until you're voice is hoarse from screaming my name," he stated in a rough, throaty voice that flamed the warmth in between her legs. Her eyes widened in surprise at his bold statement – and in the back of her mind she realized it was such a 'Sirius' thing to say – and then pure hunger entered them as she licked her lips in anticipation.

Chuckling darkly at her reaction, he ran his hands from her thigh to her ankle and then carefully began kissing his way up. Willow's reached the top of her thighs, but then disappointment filled her as his mouth left to conduct the same procedure on the next leg.

Soon he had kissed every part of her body – except the part that mattered, which had her body humming in excitement as he slowly rolled her panties down her legs. Fingering the material he smiled at her in a very _man_ type of way. "Gods, these are soaked right through," he rasped with bright eyes.

Willow smiled with the knowledge that she had as big of a reaction on him that he had on her. Spreading her legs father apart, she spoke in a low voice. "Oh yes, it's quite the problem. Know anyone who can help me with it?"

For a moment Sirius just stared at her, wet and ready for him, with an expression akin to a child on Christmas morning – if said child was legally an adult and enjoyed porn for presents.

"I'll see what I can do," he murmured as he began kissing the inside of her thighs. A gentle preliminary finger began stroking her and her back arched at the touch. After so much time already, Willow wouldn't be surprised if she came quickly now.

His finger traveled over to her nub and he gently rubbed it, which caused her to immediately twitch and moan his name.

"Sirius! Oh, goddess, more. Don't stop," she whimpered as one finger entered her with quick strokes. Another one joined and the pressure within her kept mounting until she burst like a broken dam.

Willow panted in the aftermath of the orgasm – and _goddess_ what an orgasm…To think that was only with his fingers…The sensations within her were incredible and she was rolling in a sea of pleasure. It was all a combination of going without sex for so long, the fact that she was finally intimate with Sirius, and the knowledge that they both loved her – all these things combined to fill Willow with a deep sense of pleasure… And of course what Sirius was doing to her now helped as well.

"Merlin, you're wet," he muttered with a dark hunger as his hands cupped her ass and lifted her bottom half up into the air.

"For you, Sirius, always for you," she gasped as his tongue worked its first lazy lick around her sex. She groaned his name, arched her back, and flung her legs over his shoulders as his tongue began to relentlessly assail her. Sirius sucked and licked every inch of her as he claimed the juices he had so easily wrought. Soon she could feel the pressure mounting again and she could only mumble his name and 'don't stop' over and over.

"Oh, goddess, I love you Sirius Black," mumbled breathlessly as he lowered her body – too soon for her liking – and admired his handiwork, still sitting on his knees

"What can I say? I make magic happen," he joked.

Willow shared a smile with him, loving that this moment with him felt so right – so natural. Then she noticed the prominent bulge in his pants and lightly caressed it with her foot. "Looks like you need some attention, Sir."

Groaning at her touch, he nodded. "Yes, please," he answered in a throaty voice.

With her left leg, she pushed him into a laying down position and she rolled over to straddle his waist, knowingly rubbing against his erection – delighting in how Sirius could only twitch below her and moan. Of course, she was not as cruel as him – not to mention she was getting tired of waiting for the main course – so she wouldn't waste too much time.

Lithe fingers ran underneath the top of his jeans teasingly before unfastening his pants and slowly pulling them off. Sirius was wearing black boxer briefs that did nothing to hide his arousal. She rolled them off, gasping a bit as his cock sprang to attention as soon as it was released from its tight confines.

An eyebrow raised in amusement. "My, my, you are a cocky bastard, aren't you?" she smiled sweetly with her eyes trained on him. Part of her wondered if he would fit – her last man had been the five foot, four inches Oz, after all. Then again, she and Tara _had_ used a wide variety of toys during their time…

It would be fine.

"Like what you see?" he asked as he waggled his eyebrows suggestively, a grin in place.

One hand encircled his shaft and rose slowly up to the tip, where she licked off the fledging juices.

"Like what you feel?" she asked as he shuddered under her touch.

Mouth dry with anticipation, he could only nod in response.

Willow smiled as her hand returned to gently stroking Sirius and the other hand lightly raked her nails down his toned stomach. His breathing quickened as she took him in her mouth, inch by inch swallowing his thickness.

She was relieved that a blow job was just like riding a bike – it didn't seem to matter how many years since the last time she had done this.

As his hips began bucking up in the air, he gasped her name. "Willow, oh Merlin. I don't know if I will last much longer."

Releasing him, she gave him an almost predatory look as she appraised his ready body. He quickly grabbed her arms and rolled over her, his body pinning hers. Snatching his wand from the side table he waved it over her lower stomach and said an incantation.

"Protection," he explained off her confused look.

He gave her a hungry kiss and then teasingly rubbing himself at her entrance.

"Sirius," she whispered urgently. "I need you inside me –_ now._"

"Yes, Ma'am," he murmured obligingly as he entered her with one swift thrust that had both of them moaning the other's name.

The thrusts were slow at first and it felt like Willow was floating in a dark ocean of desire as wave after wave of pleasure assaulted her senses. All too quickly, the thrusts increased in speed as they clutched each other closely like a life preserver.

Finally, after a deep thrust brushed against that special bundle of nerves inside her, Willow felt herself shake in ecstasy. "Sirius!" she screamed. "Oh goddess, I'm coming," she whimpered urgently.

He grunted as fought to control himself and entered in her one final, long, deep thrust, finally spilling himself within her.

Sirius fell next to Willow, exhausted. Grey eyes met green and they both wore identical looks of bliss.

"Love you," she whispered softly as her fingers caressed his muscled upper arm.

"Love you," he told her as he pulled her closer into him, relishing the softness of her skin.

Willow muttered a spell that laid the comforter over them both and they immediately fell asleep, with content smiles on their faces.

**Author Notes:**

**Highlights for you Scene-Skippers:**

…"Not thirteen years, Willow. I've been waiting all my life for someone like you – I just don't think I realized what I was waiting for until I stumbled into your cottage."

… "Sirius, I love you," she breathed out – without realizing exactly what she was saying.

And Sirius told her he loved her as well.

So! Happy coupleness! We are almost 100,000 words into this story and 40 chapters so I do think it is about time, si? Thank you all for your patience with this pairing. Of course… this doesn't mean their story is over. Faaaar from it *smiles mischievously*

In the next chapter we will get to see some very humorous interaction between Anya & the wizards PLUS we'll learn some more about Anya's past :)

Also, at this point there are a ton of characters in the story… And while I love everyone I can't always get around to featuring them all a lot without leaving others out. However I have received requests from people who want more Andrew, Spike, and Anya so I will be keeping that in mind. If there are any particular characters you want to see interact, now is the time to let me know because I am plotting out the final 20ish chapters.

**And now… Review Please???? Too much? Just enough? A good balance of sexy fun time and humor and reality???**

Thank you for reading!!

Luna


	42. Whips and Chains in the Chamber of Secre

Whips and Chains in the Chamber of Secrets?

A/N:

To everyone who reviewed the previous chapter, thank you! I was quite self-conscious but the positive feedback made me feel that it was worth it and accepted. Gracias :)

*Oh & at 100,000 words let me just thank each and every one of you most excellent readers and kind reviewers for sticking along on this _Sirius_-ly Awesome Adventure! :D

*Crazy mad thanks to Karis for issuing a rec! 'Tis appreciated!

*Some of the characters in this chapter I chose from a list at the HP Lexicon , so thanks to that site for its help.

*Warning: The drinking of liquids while reading is highly unadvisable due to hilarious content. ;)

When Willow first began returning to consciousness that morning the first thing she noticed was that her arm was draped over a warm body and her right leg was woven in between a pair of hairy male legs. Blinking her eyes wearily she saw that she was snuggled in the crook of Sirius' arm and that his upper body lay there exposed. Glancing at his face she saw that he was still asleep and her heart warmed at how peaceful he looked; so much different from the man she had met three and a half months ago.

Trailing a finger down his chest she began remembering what had occurred the night before and a goofy grin lit up her face. A part of her could barely believe what had happened. For the longest time Willow never thought she could feel this way about another person again – not to mention feel this way about a _man_. But she did. It was amazing how content she was lying in his arms right now. If Willow could, she would just lay in bed with him all day.

Then her stomach growled – rather too loudly for her liking.

Biting her lip, she looked down at her stomach and hoped that Sirius hadn't heard that. The first morning after sex should include cuddling and maybe some eye gazing – not her body making inappropriate noises.

"Hungry?" a tired voice murmured.

Willow's body went rigid at the sound of his voice. Turning her head she blushed at Sirius' bemused smile. "Apparently," she answered.

He rolled over to his side, kept his one arm tucked around her, and with the other he brushed wayward strands of hair behind her ear. His gaze turned serious as his fingers rolled past her ear and trailed down her jaw line to her neck and down her right arm. Suddenly Willow was completely aware of the fact that she and Sirius were still unclothed.

Leaning towards her, his lips brushed against her own. "I think it is safe to say that last night was the best night of my life," he whispered; his breath heated her cheek and she shivered.

Her lips curled upwards and Willow knew she had a goofy smile on her face. "Really?" Her tummy butterflies were all aflutter at hearing him say that… But…Last night was wonderful – definitely one of the best nights of her life – but a logical part of her was unsure if she could honestly say it was _the_ best. She pushed aside memories of Tara and focused on being in the _here_ and _now_.

"Really," he confirmed as he kissed her again. Mmm, Sirius Black knew how to kiss her in such a way that her toes curled and she wrapped herself around him tighter – tight enough to feel something hard press against her.

Skillful hands ran down her back and pulled her tighter. "I know you're hungry," he said gruffly, "But would you be interested in desert before breakfast?"

Willow laughed and ran her thumb over the contours of his lip. "You read my mind," she answered with a naughty smile.

Giggling, Willow returned Sirius' kiss as he held her in the hallway. "Sirius Black, I can so walk!"

Waggling his eyebrows comically he winked at her. "Ms. Rosenberg, you already stumbled once and we haven't even made it to the stairs yet. After all, it is quite understandable if your, shall we say aerobic exercises, don't permit you walking around so easily afterwards."

She rolled her eyes. "You really are too much, you know that right?"

"Would you have me any other way?" he responded with his most charming smile. Then he picked her up and carried her down the stairs and into the kitchen like a blushing bride and she squealed and giggled the whole time. Along the way they bypassed the Potentials giving them amused looks – except Kennedy who looked extremely annoyed – and a still tied up Andrew who flushed as he began giggling at the sight of them.

Gently lowering her, he smiled at their friends sitting around the kitchen. "Morning Anya, Moony, Giles!" he said cheerfully. He grabbed a box of cereal, two bowls, two spoons, and sat down across from Remus.

"Hey guys," Willow greeted warmly. "Where is everyone?"

"Oh the wannabe slayers are having issues adjusting to West Coast time so they're busy being wide-awake and annoying in the living room. Buffy got into a rough and tumble with a vampire and headed off to school with Dawn, with Xander driving them," Anya informed.

"Is Buffy okay?" Willow asked in concern.

"Buffy will be alright but it appears we have a new agent of the First – a primitive vampire that is incredibly strong," Giles answered gravely.

"Oh wow," Willow breathed softly.

"Yes, yes, primitive vampire equals very bad," Anya said flippantly as she rolled her eyes. "But do you know what is worst?" Anya asked.

"What?" Sirius asked as he learned forward to listen closely.

"The fact that not only did we have to hear you two having sex last night but this morning as well!" Anya retorted sharply.

Willow's face paled at her words and she glanced at Sirius who seemed shocked, if his gaped mouth was any indication. Giles immediately began cleaning his glasses and Remus just looked between them and Anya with a bemused smile.

"Uh, er, sorry about that," Sirius muttered, but Willow saw that the corner of his mouth was twitching.

"Yes Padfoot, you may want to remember doing a silencing spell next time. It was almost like living back at Hogwarts with you again," Remus said dryly, but his eyes were twinkling.

"There's a silencing spell?" Anya asked Remus, who nodded. Then her head jerked towards Sirius. "There's a silencing spell?" she asked darkly.

"Er, yeah. I suppose we kind of, er, got caught up in things," Sirius stuttered, for once looking a bit embarrassed.

Anya made a disgruntled noise and sat back with her arms crossed. "I mean, I'm all for sex. Yay sex," she pumped her fist in the air like she was on the Sex Pep Squad. "I am very excited for you two to be having sweaty fun times. But it isn't very fair for you to rub it in all our faces," she said in an annoyed voice.

Sirius turned a chuckle into a cough and then nodded at Anya soberly. "We're very sorry Anya, for having such amazing sex in your listening presence."

"Sirius!" Willow hissed as she smacked his shoulder.

Anya – not realizing that Sirius was not quite being serious – nodded reluctantly. "Alright, I suppose I can forgive you. I'm just so tired of not having a regular amount of sex. That's one of the best things _about_ being human is the sharing of bodily fluids and orgasms with a man!"

Willow rubbed her temple gently – it was _far_ too early to hear Anya discuss sex. Apparently Giles thought the same thing because he was cleaning his glasses with so much force Willow feared he may break them.

Sirius attempted to keep a straight face at Anya's blunt assessment and he eyed Moony significantly. The werewolf was looking at Anya like she was insane but there was something else as well. "You're absolutely correct, Anya. But there's a house full of men here. Can't you have sex with one of them?" he asked with eyes full of hidden amusement.

Looking thoughtful, Anya cradled her chin in her hand. "Hmm. Well, let's see." She frowned at her next words. "Well there really aren't any available men. I mean, Giles is far too old-"

"Hey! Now, I resent that. I am still quite sprightly," he countered as he jerked his glasses back on.

Anya raised her eyebrows in surprise and Willow gawked at her long-time father figure.

Giles' face flushed and he paused. "Oh bloody hell. It is far too early for this nonsense and I haven't slept in twenty-four hours. I am off to sleep on the floor in Dawn's room. Good night." He stood up and quickly walked out of the room.

"See?" Anya gestured towards the door that Giles had escaped through. "He wouldn't work. Xander used to be my pleasure partner, but I think we are finally over. You," she pointed towards Sirius, "are taken and I'm not much into threesomes – although you are very pretty Willow."

"Uh, thanks?" Willow responded. She wanted to punch Sirius for encouraging Anya to discuss sex.

"Oh, and Andrew obviously doesn't count. He's far too awkward and I think he may be more interested in Han Solo than Princess Leia," Anya snorted.

"Hey!" cried out Andrew's muffled voice from the living room. "I like them both! I mean, um, Han Solo is cool! I mean, hey stop talking about me!"

Anya rolled her eyes and threw up her hands. "See? Obviously no Andrew." Then a look of comprehension dawned on her face as she turned towards Remus and gave him a sultry smile. Willow suddenly felt very sorry for Remus but she could tell that Sirius found this turn of events far too humorous. Remus, on the other hand, looked like a deer caught in headlights and he quickly took a drink of tea to ease his dry throat.

"Although I suppose I do have our newest arrival to consider," she mused. "You are quite attractive and although you are quiet I bet you'd be an animal in the sack. Tell me, Remus, would you like to engage in hot, sweaty, naked sex with me?"

Clearly the tea had been a bad idea because Remus began coughing and his face turned red. "Uh, Anya, that is a, erm, _kind_ offer of you but I think it would be bad form for me to take you up on that, seeing as how I am serving in a teacher role here."

Anya's eyes widened and she grinned. "Oh, that would be no problem. I always wanted to play teacher. Maybe you could teach me a few things?" she winked.

Remus began sputtering and he looked to Sirius for help – which he obviously wasn't going to get since Sirius was shaking with unshed laughter as Willow glared at him.

"Moony," Sirius said quickly once he calmed himself. "You should think about it. It is after all the Gryffindor way to help out damsels in distress."

"Oh!" Anya glanced at Sirius and Remus. "You two are Gryffindors?"

They nodded.

"Hmm." Anya tapped her fingers against the table. "I didn't realize you went to Hogwarts. I thought that was just where those Auror fellows tried to get you and Willow. Well," she turned to Willow. "I've always wanted to have sex with a Gryffindor. Godric was quite the hottie. Was it good?"

"Um." Willow suddenly felt very put on the spot. Remus looked relieved to not be the focus of Anya's relentless attention and Sirius just waggled his eyebrows again. "Anya, I really don't think that is any of your business."

"Oh, you're no fun Willow." She waved her hand dismissively. "Oh well, judging by your many moans of pleasure last night and this morning I have to assume they are good."

Sirius sat up straighter and puffed out his chest. "That _would_ be a good assumption," he said cheekily.

Willow rolled her eyes at her boyfriend – it was times like now that she didn't feel the age gap one bit – and asked Anya a question. "Wait, how do you know about the Hogwarts houses? I don't think you were ever around when Sirius told me or Dawnie. And who's Godric?"

"Well I wasn't around back when they had the houses but I learned about them when I came back a few centuries later for some fun little curses on evil teenage boys. And Godric was the founder of the Gryffindor house."

"Wait, how do you know if Godric was – as you say – a hottie?" Remus asked curiously.

Staring off into the distance, Anya smiled at old memories. "Well, I haven't had much reason to think about my human life very much – it was so long ago – but you're looking at Aud, Class of 990."

"What?" Sirius and Remus exclaimed at their newly found fellow alumna.

"No way," Willow stated in surprise. Then she squinted in confusion. "And who's Aud?"

She nodded. "That was my name as a mortal. And I was one of the first classes – recruited by Helga Hufflepuff herself. Of course, when I returned home after graduation I fell in love with a filthy Muggle that broke my heart and then I became a demon, so I never kept in touch with many of my classmates."

Remus squinted his eyes and held up his hand to draw attention to his question. "Wait. Anya, are you saying that you're a witch? And that you're a demon?" It would make terrible sense for the first woman to show any interest in him – even if it was just for sex – to be a demon. After all, normal witches shied away from him due to his disease.

With a shrug, Anya bit her lip in contemplation. "Well I _used_ to be a witch. Then I was turned into a vengeance demon and I lost those powers. And I'm not a demon anymore – demon free since September."

The three of them stared at Anya in surprise and they mulled over her revelation. "So," Willow began slowly, "You used to be a witch and you never told us?" She was surprised that Anya, who never wasted a moment of telling her life story or opinions, would have kept this a secret.

"Well I didn't think you didn't realize. I told you all that I had cursed Olaf into a troll and that was why D'Hoffryn turned me into a vengeance demon." Anya shrugged. "Frankly, it's easy to remember things from my demon days but incredibly difficult to remember my first mortal life. I think it's from having an enhanced memory as a demon but not as a mortal," she mused out loud.

"So you were at Hogwarts in the time of the Founders?" Sirius asked in disbelief – still unable to get over that revelation. After all, growing up at Hogwarts they had never given much thought about the beginning – except Lily with her damn '_A History of Hogwarts'_ always at her side – but to speak to someone from that time was incredible.

"Oh yes. I don't remember a terrible amount – back then we received schooling from ages eleven to fifteen – so it was when I was fairly young. Of course, after I received my powers I went back to curse a baron and then I connected with Salazar-"

"Wait! The _Bloody Baron_?" Remus asked in astonishment.

"Well, he wasn't bloody until after he met me," she smirked. "Yes, he was a real obnoxious piece of work. Helena's ghost wished for him to feel the pain of his betrayal – and mind you, I usually ignored ghosts but I had remembered her from school – so I drove him mad until he committed suicide." A ghost of a proud smile played along her lips.

Sirius and Remus shared surprised looks. They had never heard the tale of how the Bloody Baron had died before.

"What were you saying before, about connecting with Salazar? You don't mean the other founder, do you?" Willow asked cautiously. She was a nerd to the core and loved learning various histories of different cultures, but she really didn't want to hear any more gruesome or sexual stories from Anya.

A blush, or all things, crept up Anya's neck as she giggled. "Mmm. Salazar Slytherin. He's not how history paints him – he didn't turn crazy until the end…Which I suppose may have been my fault," she added quickly with a guilty look.

Then she grinned again. "But oh, when I went back for Helena's wish at Hogwarts he caught me. Of course he knew I was a vengeance demon and he only vaguely remembered me as a student. He originally planned on killing me… Until we realized there was a better outlet for all of our energy."

Anya sighed with a happy smile. "I tell you, that Salazar was the kinkiest sex I had ever had. I mean, we're talking whips and chains in his Chamber of Secrets and all sorts of toys. Not to mention, I know he was all about the snakes, but the man had a freaking anaconda in his pants!"

Sirius and Remus both pushed away their breakfast and began looking green. Willow laughed softly, happy to see that Sirius no longer looked so pleased about encouraging Anya's amusing sex talk.

"Right then, I should probably go feed Buckbeak. Moony, want to help?" Sirius asked quickly.

Remus jerked his head forward in a nod. "Yes, that sounds like an excellent plan."

The two Marauders ran out of the kitchen as if the Bloody Baron himself was after them.

Anya blinked in confusion at Willow. "Was it something I said?"

Outside in the backyard, Sirius and Remus began laughing over the extremely strange conversation that had just occurred in the kitchen.

"Is she _always_ like that?" Remus asked in bafflement.

"Yeah," Sirius grinned, "She's an odd bird, but I like her. Even if she did threaten to castrate me."

"She what?" Remus asked in an appalled tone.

"It was nothing," Sirius laughed with a wave of his hand. "This lot has a thing about threatening the significant others of their friends with some sort of torture and, or, death."

"Oh, well that's understandable," Remus said with a smile. He could still remember the day when he had momentarily set aside his friendship with James and given the teenage boy a good set of threats once he had finally started to date Lily, who had been a good friend of his since First Year.

"So, it seems that things are going quite well with Willow?" he asked with an arched brow.

Sirius let out a barking laugh and ran a hand through his long hair. "Blimey Moony, now you're sounding like Anya."

Remus chuckled. "Forgive me, but it is incredibly surprising to see my friend Sirius Black settling down with a woman."

Sirius shrugged but he couldn't hide the rather sappy smile that lit his features at the thought of Willow. "Things change, Moony. Being locked up for so long changes a man; I'm not the same person anymore – in that sense anyway."

"So are you serious about her?" Remus asked with a smile – it was a welcome change to see Padfoot actually happy and committed to a woman.

"Moony, I'm _always_ serious," Sirius joked as he levitated Buckbeak's meal toward him. Buckbeak snorted and Sirius glared at the hippogriff. "Oh, be quiet Buckbeak. Merlin, you need to stop hanging around with Dawn and Buffy. They are not good influences on you."

Remus chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Looks like not everything about you has changed," he remarked.

"True," Sirius admitted. "But I am serious about Willow. I think I could," he paused and glanced at the kitchen window.

"You think you could..?" Remus prodded.

Sirius turned to him with an odd expression on his face – like he had just realized this thought. "I think I could see myself marrying her," he admitted. "Could see us having a family like Lily and James – like how my life should have been instead of being locked up for most of my adult life," Sirius added bitterly.

"Oh Sirius," Remus sighed. "I wish things could have been different."

"Me too, Moony. Me too. But I suppose if I hadn't been put in Azkaban I never would have met Willow," Sirius said softly as he began cleaning Buckbeak's area of the backyard with a cleaning spell.

"You know what I wish, Moony?" Sirius asked after a period of silence.

"What, Padfoot?" Remus asked in response.

"I wish I had Harry here with me. With him and Willow, I feel like I could start a real family. Things would be perfect then."

Remus clapped Sirius' shoulder. "Maybe when all this is over and your name is cleared, Padfoot. That would be great."

Sirius' eyes twinkled with amusement and he grinned at Remus. "Just as long as you come over and bring the missus. I'm sure Harry would love to meet Anya," he teased.

"Damn you Padfoot for not warning me about that woman," Remus bristled. "I cannot believe she asked me point-blank if I wanted to have sex with her! I mean, of all the things. That is surely one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard!" he complained.

Sirius gave him an innocent look. "So I take that to mean that you will not be having, quote, 'hot, sweaty sex' with Anya?"

"No," Remus growled. "That would be entirely irresponsible of me to have sex with a woman I barely know while staying in a house containing my students. Not to mention she's younger than me!"

"One," Sirius stuck out a finger to count, "Anya's actually older than you by a thousand years. Two, you're a bloody Marauder so of course you're irresponsible. Three, I can't think of a better pairing than a former demon and a werewolf. And four, from the way you're ranting it sounds like you probably are in dire need of a good shag."

Remus glared at Sirius and raised his wand so quickly that Sirius didn't even have time to react before a jet of ice cold water hit him right in the crotch, causing Sirius to howl in surprise. "Not all of us constantly think with that body part, Padfoot," he said dryly with a smirk.

"Damn you Moony!" Sirius shot a spell off and soon Remus' pants fell, leaving him clad in only red Gryffindor boxers. "Come on out Anya, he's ready for you!" Sirius teasingly called.

Face flushed, Remus quickly pulled up his pants and glared at Sirius. "Sirius," he stated in a threatening tone.

"Fine, Moony. I'll behave if _you_ behave," Sirius complied reluctantly.

"Fine," Remus agreed shortly. "By the way, before I forget or you make me mad enough to toss it, I have a present for you. Now's about the right time so it should work."

"What should work?" Sirius asked with drawn eyebrows.

Remus grinned and pulled a mirror out of his magically enhanced pants pocket. "Recognize this?"

"Ah! That's my mirror! Blimey, Moony! How'd you get this?" he shouted as he snatched this. "I haven't seen this in years," he muttered as he stared at it in shock.

"After they took you away I was the Order member assigned to go through your house for clues. Don't know why I did at the time – maybe because I did remember how useful it was for you and James when you communicated in separate detentions– but I took it."

"This is great Moony – but where's the other one?" Sirius looked up from the mirror to stare at him in confusion

Remus grinned. "Well, it is nine in the morning here, which means it's five in the evening there. It's our agreed upon time so hopefully it works."

"There, where?" Sirius asked. He inspected the mirror closer and jumped back when a boy with a lightning shaped scar, messy black hair, and wire-rimmed glasses popped into the image.

"Hey Sirius!" Harry Potter shouted in excitement as he greeted his beloved godfather.

"Harry!" Sirius' face broke out in a toothy, wide smile. "What are you doing?" His eyes darted from Harry to Remus' grinning face and back to Harry.

"When Remus came to pick up Luna with Mr. Giles he gave me this mirror. We've used it a couple of times and he told me he'd give it to you about this time. How are you?" the boy eagerly asked.

In all honesty, Sirius was so happy that he had to blink back tears. "Better than ever, dear boy. Better than ever."

Lucius Malfoy apparated into the dimly lit living room of the house they had 'borrowed' for the duration of their visit.

"Lucius! You're back," Nigel Goyle stood up from his spot on the couch and his large frame threw a shadow over Lucius.

"Yes, I am." His eyes darted towards the tellyvision that was currently on some channel that was showing a sobbing woman sitting at the hospital bed of unconscious patient in a body cast. "What are you doing, Goyle?" he asked sharply.

"Oh, ah, just sitting here," he mumbled.

A delicately shaped eyebrow rose in dark amusement. "Sitting there watching that Muggle device?" he asked lightly, but there was a depth to his voice that made Goyle shiver in fear.

"Yes," he admitted – for he knew the consequences of lying to Lucius Malfoy.

A nonverbal stinging spell hit Goyle in the chest and the larger man fell to the plaid couch in pain.

"We are not here for a vacation," Lucius spat. "I have been preparing over the last nine weeks to get us here, get Sirius Black, and get the witch, and serve our new Master. We are here on an important mission and if you cannot make yourself useful then I would be happy to use you as a practice dummy for offensive spells."

Goyle nodded dumbly – his body hurt too much for much coherent thought. "Yes, Lucius."

"Where are the others?"

"In the kitchen eating lunch."

Lucius waved his wand and a shrill alarm let out. Soon four other people poured into the small living room. They all took sat down and Lucius appraised them silently. Nigel Goyle was not the smartest wizard, but he was ruthless when needed and an excellent Unspeakable at times. Even if he lost his wand, his sheer size made him a terrifying opponent, although perhaps that was due to the fact that the dark-featured man enjoying killing his victims by hand.

To his right was the woman Alecto Carrow who had been a Death Eater alongside him and Goyle but had managed to evade discovery due to her employment as an Unspeakable. There were few women who had served the Dark Lord but Alecto had proved her worth then. She was an incredibly twisted creature and would serve him well on this mission.

To Goyle's right was Waldon Macnair, another former Death Eater and current executioner for the Ministry Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures. Since it was known that the dangerous ('_thanks to his work_', Lucius thought with a snort) hippogriff Buckbeak was with Sirius Black, Lucius had been able to get a hold of Macnair this mission. Macnair's bloodthirsty nature and willingness to listen to Lucius' orders made him perfect for this.

Next to Macnair was Hugh Rosier, another former Death Eater who had managed to escape Azkaban due to his accusation that he had been Imperioused. Rosier had been living in America since Voldemort's fall and would be able to help them with evading the American Department of Magic. Already they had needed to escape the American Aurors several times and did so all thanks to Rosier's knowledge of the country.

He admired the final person to walk in, the young woman sitting off to the side in her overstuffed chair. She reminded him of someone… Obviously he knew her mother but there was something else about her…So far she had already proved herself fairly useful and Lucius was interested to see just exactly how she would be able to serve him.

"Excellent." Lucius clapped his hands. "Things are progressing well. As promised, the Watcher led us to the home of the Slayer and the Dark One. Our preliminary surveillance has concluded that all of the potential slayers are indeed arriving there and that Sirius Black is still there."

"Sir?" Alecto asked with a fierce look in her eyes. "When will we get Sirius Black?" She grinned, revealing blackened teeth. "I do miss torturing. Surely, since we're going to hand him over to the Dementors anyways we can torture him beforehand?"

Lucius smiled. "I appreciate your enthusiasm, Alecto. I trust that you miss the old days?"

Alecto cackled cruelly. "Oh yes, life has been so much harder without our Dark Lord. As an Unspeakable I still get to engage in some torture when dealing with other nations but not as much as I would like," she pouted.

"Don't worry, madam. Soon a new power will take over this world – and we will be at the First's right hand." Lucius chuckled darkly as his former Death Eater acquaintances cheered – even though he knew they were mere pawns and that he would be the one at his new Master's side.

Still though, it was always good to keep up the group's morale.

A/N:

**Please review** & let me know what you think! I don't know about you, but I greatly enjoyed writing a lot of the Anya parts – I have lately been writing in Panera and people probably thought I was crazy for laughing to myself ;) lol, hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Thank you!


	43. Flirting With Disaster

**Chapter 43: Flirting With Disaster**

**NOTE TO READERS: A MISTAKE WAS MADE WHEN UPLOADING. THIS CHAPTER WAS ACCIDENTALLY UPLOADED AS CHAPTER 43. IN REALITY, THE CHAPTER TITLED '**_**FLIRTING WITH DISASTER'**_** IS CHAPTER 43 AND CHAPTER 44 IS '**_**TOO MUCH INFORMATION'**_**.**

**MY SINCERE APOLOGIES FOR MESSING UP THE FLOW!**

Remus took a seat on one of the overstuffed chairs and surveyed the room. Dawn Summers, the sister of the Slayer and recently discovered witch was curled up against the end of the couch reading one of the first year textbooks that Harry had – through Amelia from the Devon Coven – mailed over. She was lanky and, from prior observation, fairly uncoordinated – she did not appear to be as powerful as Sirius had testified. However, she seemed to possess a keen hunger for knowledge, if her persistent questions the day before and her constant reading meant anything.

Sitting next to Dawn, also engrossed in a book (but this one was simply titled '_Vampry'_) was Luna Lovegood the Ravenclaw third year and potential slayer. Throughout the prior year while he was teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts the unique girl had interested him. Contrary to most wizarding children she did not care about the fact that he was a werewolf – in fact during their trip she had asked to witness and document his transformation! Remus knew that her father was the editor of The Quibbler so that likely explained her strange personality. His personal assessment of Luna was that she was an extremely bright witch with a penchant for researching the unknown – Remus had a feeling that she would be an enjoyable student to have one-on-one.

Sitting regally in the other chair sat Kennedy Monroe, the potential slayer and heir to the Monroe family's publishing empire. David Monroe, her father, is the owner of the most widely read wizarding newspaper among the American Wizarding community and he also owned several popular magazines and regional newspapers. When Rupert had been notified by Kennedy's watcher that they had already had several Bringer attacks they had sped to Massachusetts only to realize that they had arrived too late to provide protection, in the end, to her watcher. Mr. Monroe had sent his daughter with them on the promise of her protection and additional magical education.

Of course Remus had agreed to educate her but now he almost wish he had not made that promise. Kennedy seemed fervently against learning from him – or really even spending time in close quarters with him. He suspected that she held a prejudice against him for his werewolf nature but Remus honestly did not know how to approach the girl. She was already of age and he thought it may just be better to let things lie.

Smiling, he observed how Sirius and Willow were sitting as close as two people could be on the couch, without actually sitting in each other's lap. He had spent some time with the witch and wholeheartedly approved – she seemed to be a good fit for Sirius. Already he had seen how her serious nature nicely tempered his reckless one and at the same time it seemed he brought a lot of laughter into her life. Remus was very happy that his friend had been able to find someone so quickly after his escape…Although he couldn't help but feel a little sorry for himself that he was still alone.

Of course he had experienced several romances but most women straight away avoided someone like him. Even if they ignored it in the beginning and proclaimed it didn't matter, eventually the prejudice and hardship would become too much for them to bear. Not to mention, if her ever were to marry there was a chance to he pass along his werewolf curse. Maybe it was because of this loneliness – or perhaps he was finally beginning to lose his mind – but Remus couldn't seem to get Anya out of his mind.

He had never met such a bold woman before – in a way she reminded him of a younger Sirius Black – and he didn't quite know what to think of her. On one hand he found her fascinating and he imagined with a thousand years of life she must have a great amount of history and stories to share. On the other hand the former witch and ex-demon was rather terrifying with her honest proclamations about sex and other unpleasant topics.

"Moony?" Sirius prodded, interrupting Remus' thoughts.

Remus smiled at everyone and began their meeting. "Right. Well, we were going to wait for Buffy, since she is Dawn's legal guardian and should be informed on our lessons-"

"She thinks she has to be informed on _everything_," Dawn rolled her eyes.

Pretending to ignore the comment, he continued. "But since it appears that the pick-up of Violet Day, the newest potential, is taking longer than expected, we shall begin now."

He cleared his throat; it had been a while since the last time Remus had spoken to a group – since last June when he was still teaching at Hogwarts. "Laying out our schedule first, it had been determined that Dawn will continue her lessons after school with either myself or Sirius tutoring her. Luna, I have blocked off mornings for your instruction to keep you on track for your third year studies because in the afternoons you will have training with Buffy. And Kennedy-"

The dark-eyed brunette waved her hand dismissively – as if he were a common servant. "I already told you that lessons will not be necessary. I have been extremely well trained in all areas and I excel particularly at the dar- defense of the dark arts. In fact, I used to patrol with my old watcher and I'd turn vampires in burning torch lights," she finished coolly after a slight stutter.

"In that case, why are you here now?" Sirius asked in a rather annoyed tone that forced Remus to hide a smile – his friend still held a grudge against the potential for trying to seduce his girlfriend.

Her lips twitched. "I was bored."

Sirius started to say something back but Willow laid a hand against his chest. "Ok, simmer down everyone. Listen, we're the only magic users that Buffy has and we'll have to work together. Actually," she bit her lip, "You really will need to because I'm not quite ready to jump back in. I mean, little things, but I don't want the First using me as a tool again." She noticeably leaned into Sirius at her last words.

To change the subject – he had heard from Sirius about Willow's bad experiences with dark magic – he offered Dawn his wand in an outstretched arm. "Dawn, take my wand. I'd like to see you do a spell."

She bit her lip as she gingerly took the wand. "Sure you want me to do one inside? Last time I did one in this room I blew a hole through the wall."

"Try something easy," he grinned. "A levitation spell perhaps?"

Dawn smiled and pointed at Kennedy. "_Wingardium Leviosa_!" The witch shot up in the air and her back plastered against the ceiling. Idly Remus wondered if Dawn had a dislike of Kennedy just like Sirius did – that would make sense since the teenage girl seemed to look up to her current wizarding instructor.

"What the bloody hell? Unhand me this instant! How dare you? Don't you know who I am?" Kennedy raged. Dark eyes hardened like flint and her fists curled against her sides. Then, almost as if she remembered where she was she took a deep breath and calmed herself. "Dawn?" she asked in a measured tone. "Please let me down. Now."

With a devilish grin, Dawn lowered her down and Remus stared at the fledging witch in astonishment, as did Luna and Kennedy.

"That was a bit too much, but excellent for someone only studying as long as you have been," Remus remarked.

Kennedy's lips curled into a secretive smile. "Yes, that was pretty remarkable. You must have a lot of power," she said in a light tone as she watched the former Key grinning as she did some un-needed stretching.

"Yup, what can I say? I'm the General of Greatness and Major of Magics," Dawn grinned.

"More like Dame of Dorkiness," Sirius smirked.

"Hey!" Dawn scowled.

"Actually, there already is a Major of Magics," Luna remarked in her standard dreamy voice.

"Huh?" Dawn inquired loudly.

Luna nodded sagely. "Yes. The Major of Magics was responsible for leading the wizard colonists into battle against the native magic users here in the early 1600s."

The rest of them shared baffled looks at Luna's words.

"Oh. Well, I just used that phrase to play off of the kiddie pizza place Major Magics," Dawn explained. "That's pretty cool that you know that though." She beamed at the younger girl.

Luna shrugged. "I like to read a lot. And actually apparently that kiddie place you spoke of was started by Major Magics great-great-great grandson who was a Squib."

Willow and Dawn giggled as only a Muggle could in such a situation. "That is _so_ cool!" Dawn said. "I like this whole secret witchy world I get to play in now."

Xander walked in then, carrying his tool box in one hand. Behind him was Anya who was holding a stack of large pieces of blue paper. "Hey you wacky witches, what's so giggle-worthy?"

"Top secret witch stuff," Dawn said confidently with a gleam in her eye.

"Oh!" Anya said in a concerned tone. "Dawn, does that mean that you blew something up again and are trying to hide it? Because it is getting awfully tiring to keep picking up the shrapnel around here."

"No, nothing got blown up" Dawn scowled as she folded her arms.

"Ready to start making those blue-print things you were talking about in order to fix the house, Xander?" Sirius asked He had never done such a large scale spell and was certainly looking forward to it.

"Yup! My lovely assistant has them right here," he gestured towards Anya as the dumped the papers on the coffee table.

"Yes, apparently I am good for carting around items like a maid," she said in an annoyed tone. Seeing that all the seats were taken she grinned and sat on the arm of Remus' chair.

"Good afternoon, Remus. How are you?" she flirted as her glossed lips curved into a bright smile.

Remus sat back farther in the chair and tried to stop thinking about how good she smelled – some of the Muggle perfumes really were quite wonderful. "Er, fine," he mumbled.

He turned to Sirius, in part to distract himself from Anya. "So is there a reason why Dawn doesn't have her own wand? That may be why it's harder for her to control her magic."

"We did think of that, but with me being Public Enemy Number One and Sirius Number Two, we didn't think that would go over well, – trying to enter into a wand shop and all," Willow explained.

"Why do you get to be Public Enemy Number One?" Sirius said in a joking tone. "I am the mass murderer after all."

Willow rolled her eyes. "Sirius, are you really that competitive?"

"Yes," answered Remus and Sirius at the same time.

"Jinx!" Dawn cried gleefully as she pointed at them.

The wizards turned to her in confusion, as did the other non-Muggles. "Dawn, what does that-" Remus started to ask but Dawn interrupted him.

"Jinx!" she giggled. "You guys said the same thing at the same time, which is a jinx. And then Remus was the first one to say something so that means that Sirius can't say anything until the jinx has its run.

"It's an old American thing that children say," Willow explained properly. "I used to do it to Xander all the time," she grinned at her best friend.

"Only because you would whip out the word in point zero-two seconds," Xander mumbled, but his eyes were lit up with amusement at remembering the childhood together.

Sirius grimaced and opened up his mouth… Only no sound came out. His eyes bulged and he began to look panicked as he opened up his mouth again, but he only released a stream of air. Grabbing his throat, he rubbed it and tried speaking again.

"Oh my goddess, Sirius? Can you really not talk?" Willow asked in a motherly tone as she rubbed his back soothingly.

Xander and Remus burst into laughter while Kennedy smiled wickedly, Anya smirked, and Dawn pressed her hand over her mouth. Luna just sat there silently observing it like she was taking mental notes.

"Uh oh," Dawn whispered with wide eyes.

Sirius turned to glare at her and waved his wand threateningly.

"Oh Merlin, this is too good," Remus snickered. "All those times we wanted to get Sirius to shut up and a first year witch does it. This is a memory I will keep forever," he gasped as he held his stomach.

Sirius turned his glare towards Remus and waved his wand in the air.

"Eek!" Anya shrieked as she fell backwards into Remus' lap. Grabbing both sides of her waist, Remus caught her so she wouldn't fall over the edge of the chair. He stared down at her with a surprised look as she lay nestled in his arms. Realizing her position she batted her eyes flirtatiously. "Well, if you wanted me to sit in your lap, you only had to ask," she murmured.

Sirius began silently laughing and Xander looked as if he couldn't decide if he wanted to choke Sirius or Remus first.

"Um, let me help you up. I think Sirius had a spell _misfire_ on him and that resulted in your fall," Remus mumbled awkwardly as he helped Anya back up. But as she got back up she made sure to drag her bum across his crotch and _by Merlin_ this woman was going to be the death of him!

He grabbed the spell books to lay across his lap and shot Sirius – still silently laughing – a deadly glare.

"Remus, can you hurry up and fix Sirius so we can get to work?" an exasperated and irritated Xander asked. Sure, he and Anya were finished. They had tried to get together again but their night of sex proved that things weren't the same. Nevertheless Xander in no way, shape, or form, liked to see his former-fiancé being groped by some older man – never mind that Anya was older than all of them combined.

"_Finite_ _Incantatem_," Remus said with a flick of his wand.

"BOUT DARN TIME!" Sirius shouted. "Oops," he said in a quieter voice. "Didn't realize I had been shouting."

"Sorry, Sirius," a contrite Dawn apologized.

Sirius smirked. "You, my dear, know the consequences of harassing a Marauder – so consider yourself warned."

Dawn pursed her lips and nodded, silently accepting his challenge. From now on, she would have to be hyper aware of her surroundings.

"Yes, Padfoot," Remus said darkly. "Consider yourself warned."

Sirius, realizing that his previous statement also applied to Moony, just shrugged and grinned. "As they say here in the States, 'Bring it,'" he chuckled.

"Xander, I still cannot believe that you had Sirius watch '_Bring It On'_ with you!" Willow complained. Over the last day Sirius had been trying to find any excuse to use the formerly popular phrase and it was starting to descend from cuteness to annoyingness.

"What? He needed to understand cheerleading!" Xander defended. "And the brunette is extremely hot!"

"And it was a very educational movie," Sirius nodded with a cheeky grin.

Anya rolled her eyes. "That's one of Xander's favorite movies – only to watch the girls jump around. Or so he says." She shook her head and shared a smile with Remus who found himself smiling back.

Xander shot her a glare, still feeling upset with her flirtations towards Remus.

"Hey, so what about my wand?" Dawn asked Remus eagerly. "Can you order me one?"

"A wand cannot be ordered," Remus spoke gently. "You would need to go to a wand shop because the wand chooses the witch. Now, since wand shops are only in wizarding communities, we would need to find one here in America. I suppose I could owl Dumbledore and see if he knows anyone – I am completely unfamiliar with how they do things in America."

"My great uncle is a wand maker," Luna said softly.

"You don't say?" Remus said with a smile. He knew Luna would be a wonderful addition to their group.

"Really? Can we go? Please please please please can we go?" Dawn asked as she bounced up and down on the couch.

"Where does you uncle live?" Willow asked.

"Oh he lives in the mountains outside Portland, Oregon. There's a wizarding shopping area inside the city; that's where his shop is," she answered with a smile. "He went there years ago to study the Sasquatch."

"No way," Dawn breathed.

"Why on earth would he want to study such a lowly form of beast?" Kennedy asked with an arched brow. "They're not even good for magical purposes."

Luna frowned. She was used to people making fun of her but few were quite so rude – except perhaps Draco Malfoy and the other Slytherins. "They are a fascinating and quite intelligent species," she said stiffly as her large eyes studied the other potential slayer.

"Would you be able to get him to help us?" Remus asked.

Turning her heard towards him, she nodded. "Oh yes. I'll have to owl him, though. I haven't seen him since I was five when father took me a trip to hunt for nerfherders in Canada."

"Nerfherders?" asked Dawn; always interested in soaking up new knowledge.

"They're great large lizard-like creatures that herd and guard the polar pixies," Luna answered with a small smile. She liked how Dawn was always interested in what she had to say and never acted like she was crazy.

"Sweet." Dawn drew out the word and looked expectantly towards Remus. "So when can we go?"

Remus sighed. "We'll have to figure that out. But don't owl your great uncle, Luna. You can never be too careful of who's intercepting messages."

"Alright," she answered. After all, she heard the adults discussing the Unspeakables – clearly they would have their flying zorrini watching the skies and attacking messenger owls.

"Anyways, it's probably time to get started," Xander said loudly as he glanced at Anya who was slowly leaning backwards against the armrest, not quite touching Remus, but smiling at him. "Do you have the spells, Remus?"

Remus tore his eyes away from Anya's lovely golden brown eyes and sat up straight. "Yes. Here. Right here," he said quickly. He looked around the room. "Er, Dawn, your talents are probably not necessary at the moment. This spell will require a bit more superior work. Luna, we may bring you in later but this still might be too much for a third year level. Perhaps you girls could practice your magic outside?"

A dark look passed over Dawn's face. "But I wanna help! Come on, you said so yourself this is a hard spell; you could use all the help you could get," she argued.

Remus was finding it increasingly hard to think with Anya sitting so close to him – _Merlin_ did she have to sit so close? – because all her could think about was the fact she wanted to have sex with him. With him! It was like he was a teenage boy again and he couldn't help but wonder what she looked like with her clothes off... Merlin, she had smooth looking skin…

"Dawn, I know you want to help but you're not ready for this yet. But don't worry, you'll get there someday soon," Willow said gently.

"Fine," Dawn grimaced as she let out a drawn-out sigh and stood up with her book. "Come on Luna. Let's go play with magic."

"Play? Playing bad," Xander said quickly. "We do not play with magic in this house, Dawnie. Bad things happen, like dancing demons or vampires under a love spell trying to bite you, or other bad, bad things."

Dawn rolled her eyes. "Xander, you know what I meant," she huffed as she walked out of the room.

Xander sighed as he took Dawn's place on the couch. "I'm just sayin', these kids now a days. Next thing you know, they'll be using the 'w' word."

"What's that?" asked an alert Kennedy. "Is that something Muggle?"

"The 'w' word is 'wish' as in the when the noun for first person-"

"-I?" Remus interrupted Anya with a curious look.

"Yes," she nodded. "Anyways, that's how vengeance demons get 'cha. Make a wish and they'll make it come true – in the worst way possible." Then she smiled as some of her former wishes passed through her memory.

Xander glared at the sight of Anya perched so close to the new wizard and tapped his blueprints. "Okay, so let's get started planning the house."

"Ooh, planning? Can I help? I used to be very good at planning evil things…And, um, I bet planning a magical house would share similar skills," Andrew spoke eagerly as he walked into the living room.

Xander shut his eyes for a moment and wondered what made Buffy think that untying and un-gagging that kid had been a good idea. "Seeing that you neither have magical skills nor carpentry skills, then no."

"Aw!" Andrew stomped his foot like an angry preschooler who wasn't allowed to watch cookies for a snack. "Come on! I'm not evil anymore! I wanna do something," he whined.

"Andrew, why don't you sit quietly in the corner and take notes. That would be something you could do," Remus suggested kindly.

"Great!" Andrew shot Remus a radiantly happy smile. "I will be the best note taker ever... Um, do you have any paper? Or a pen?" he asked as his eyes scanned the room.

"Here," Sirius sent a spare notebook and pen flying into the air with a spell.

"Thanks Mr. Black!" Andrew said a bright smile as he sat down in the corner, his pen poised over the paper.

A few of them covered up their laughter with a bout of coughing as Sirius closed his eyes in embarrassment. For some reason Andrew had become fascinated with both Sirius and Remus and listened to their every word – which weirded them out but amused everyone else.

"Honestly, I don't know why you're so nice to the pipsqueak," Anya muttered under her breath to Remus.

Remus shrugged. "He's not a bad kid." Truth be told, Remus always felt for the least well-liked people. Had he not been befriended by James and Sirius his first year Remus assumed his tenure at Hogwarts would have been much unhappier.

"Hey! I'm back!" called out Buffy as she slammed the door shut. She brought in a very nervous girl wearing a rainbow beret who waved at them with a small smile. "Everyone, this is Vi. She's the potential from Texas." Buffy held her arms out like a game show host to display the newest potential and she smiled – even though something as small as smiling hurt her face. Buffy was still incredibly bruised from her fight with the Turok-Han, but she was alive – and she would make that bastard vamp pay for killing Annabelle.

"Well, hullo there 'lil darlin'," Xander said in his best Texan accent as he tipped an imaginary hat.

Vi giggled as Buffy rolled her eyes. "That smooth talker is Xander, who has the mad carpenter skills that even makes Jesus jealous." She grinned as everyone groaned. "Be good, guys. We need to give her a good impression of this place. Anyways, that's Sirius – and yes, that is his name – Black and he's a wicked wizard. Er, not wicked like naughty bad – well," she laughed. "Unless your name is Willow."

Buffy grinned at Willow's noise of outrage and Sirius' barking laugh. "Anyways, I meant wicked like mad skills. And that's Willow, Wiccan Goddess of the West. Right there is Remus Lupin who's a wizard and a werewolf-"

"-But don't worry, he's housetrained!" Sirius interrupted with a sly smile.

Remus growled. "I'll show you housetrained, pup," he joked threateningly.

Vi gasped "Is he a werewolf too?" she whispered to Buffy as she pointed towards Sirius, but the others still heard her.

"Looks can be deceiving – even though he has all that hair he's actually not a werewolf," Buffy snickered. "But he is an Animorph, though."

Xander howled with laughter as Sirius let out an indignant, "That's not it!"

"Oh wow, Sirius Black is an Animorph?" Andrew asked eagerly.

"What? Bloody hell, I'm an animagus, not whatever an 'Animorph' is," Sirius explained hotly. He glared at Buffy's innocent smile. "I swear, woman, you pretend like you don't know how to pronounce our wizarding things but I know damn well you do."

Buffy just shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said sweetly.

Remus, Anya, Willow, and Xander all chuckled at that.

"Ok, back to intros. This is Anya the ex-demon who apparently also used to be a witch. In the corner is Andrew who… Well…" Buffy looked at a loss as to how to explain Andrew's presence.

"It's fine, Buffy," Andrew stated in a brave tone as he made eye contact with Vi. "You may know the truth, Young One. You see, I was once a man riddled by dark power and was seduced by the lure of the dark side. I gave in," he sighed as he looked down at his hands. "I committed awful atrocities but now I have been brought back to the Side of Light by these humble Doers of Good that you see before you," he informed her in a pompous tone.

Vi nodded slowly; very confused. "Uh, okay."

"Just don't ask," Buffy whispered as everyone rolled their eyes at Andrew's dramatics. "Anyways, our final person is Kennedy – she's a witch but also a potential like you."

Kennedy gave a slight nod of her head in greeting.

"Andrew, will you take Vi to where we've been keeping everyone's stuff and introduce her to Molly and Chloe and Luna?" Buffy asked.

Andrew paused and glanced at Remus and then again at Buffy. "But Mr. Lupin needs me to take notes for their important meeting," he protested – clearly wanting to hang out with the 'cool' magical people.

Remus had to fight not to smile. "That'll be fine, Andrew. Obviously you are needed more there"

"As you wish, Mr. Lupin." Reluctantly, Andrew got up and, while muttering under his breath, took the new potential by the arm and into the basement.

"Vi seems nice," Willow commented.

"Yeah," Buffy sighed as she plopped in between Willow and Xander. "Possibly too nice. I just can't see her fighting – or Luna." Then her eyes darted towards Kennedy as she just realized the other potential slayer was in the room. "Don't repeat a word," she said in a threatening tone.

"Of course," Kennedy smiled. "You're the boss."

Buffy frowned. Kennedy had been way too nice lately. It was weird. Ignoring it, she turned to Remus and blurted our eagerly, "So, have you started planning the additions yet? Cause I _totally_ want a bowling alley in the basement! And a _way_ bigger close. Ooh, no, wait, two closets!"

Remus sighed. This was going to be a very long process.

**A/N:**

*Whew* Lots of characters to deal with now… A bit funny that for so long it was just Sirius or Willow with two others in the scenes, tops :) It's harder to bring in everyone, but more fun in the end, I think :)

Anyways, hope you enjoyed this… Lots of fun things occurring, like a future field trip to Wizarding Portland!

As always, I would love to hear your thoughts on what's going on! Your excellent bits of feedback keep me writing so quickly! :D

**Random bits:**

***nerherders=** Buffy fans know that is the name of the band who does the theme song ;)

***Sasquatch=** other name for Bigfoot; there are always a ton of sightings in the Pacific Northwest

***Portland, OR**= a BEAUTIFUL city that I visited two years ago and I thought it would make for a lovely adventure :D

*** The Major of Magics was responsible for leading the wizard colonists into battle against the native magic users here in the early 1600s.=** If our founding fathers in America drove back the natives, I bet the wizards did too; especially because the natives would have been naturalistic magic users like Willow, thus primitive and not wand wizards. Yay for fake history ;)

***Major Magics**= In case you've never heard of it, it's like Chuck E. Cheese except… no mouse and extra magic…Or something like that…

***Bring It On**= starred Kirsten Dunst and our very own Eliza Dusku, who was the brunette that Xander mentioned :)

***Animorph**= Books and a Nickelodeon TV show featuring young teens who turn into animals. I think when I was that age I liked watching this one really cute boy on it, but that's all I remember haha.

***polar pixies, zorrini** = all made up by me!


	44. Too Much Information

**Chapter 44: Too Much Information**

**A/N:**

**NOTE TO READERS: A MISTAKE WAS MADE WHEN UPLOADING. THIS CHAPTER WAS ACCIDENTALLY UPLOADED AS CHAPTER 43. IN REALITY, THE CHAPTER TITLED '**_**FLIRTING WITH DISASTER'**_** IS CHAPTER 43 AND CHAPTER 44 IS '**_**TOO MUCH INFORMATION'**_**.**

**MY SINCERE APOLOGIES FOR MESSING UP THE FLOW!**

There are a lot of things that either have developed or are in the process of developing that resulted through many conversations with AllenPitt, so a huge beyond huge shout out to him for the many wonderful bits of inspiration :D Gracias por todo!

Xander walked silently down the stairs and stood next to Buffy. As his eyes rove around the basement to observe each of the potentials he whispered into her ear. "How are they doing?"

Buffy sighed. "It makes me wish that Giles was back from speaking to the Botox's Eye thingy. I don't think I ever realized how hard it was to train slayers before."

"That bad?"

Her eyes darted to Rona and Chloe sparring in hand to hand. "Rona's not bad, she's a tough kid. Been picking up on the basics fairly okay. Chloe on the other hand is just too timid. Watch how she keeps hesitating when the moment calls for her to hit Rona."

Xander saw what she was talking about and he winced as Chloe jerkily threw a fist towards Rona that she easily side-stepped – leaving the poor girl falling to the floor.

"What about Kennedy?" he asked. "She seems to be doing kind of good against Molly." He nodded towards the fighting brunettes.

"Yeah, she's not bad. But she's also been trained her whole life by a watcher. Honestly, while she seems to do okay with hand to hand she really doesn't know as much as I would have thought. The girl thought I was crazy when I asked her if she knew how to use a crossbow – apparently her watcher relied too much on her magical combat knowledge."

"And Vi is decent," Buffy added thoughtfully. "She's timid as hell when you talk to her but look at her now." Xander's eyes followed the movements of the twisting red-head as she pirouetted away from Luna's upper punch. "She gets this look in her eyes – I can see her making something of herself. Luna," Buffy sighed. "Luna is a bit like Chloe though. I don't know if it's because she's a witch or because she's a bit…peculiar, but she doesn't seem very engaged."

"Well, Buff, most girls are taught from an early age not to fight. Some of them seem a bit sheltered." Xander shrugged. "Give them time."

Buffy's lips set in a firm line. "Time is what we don't have, Xand. That uber-vamp kicked my ass a few nights ago and with all the wannabes coming here I'm not sure how well I can protect them. Especially if I can't get Spike back and I'm the strongest person we have." Her eyes swam with worry as she gave Xander a significant look. "I need to prepare them as best as I can so they can protect themselves – especially if they get Called."

Xander was silent. He couldn't imagine Buffy dying – _again_.

"Thanks for coming out, Amy. It's nice to have someone do this sort of stuff with." Willow smiled at Amy as she tied the last bag of protective powder with a bright blue ribbon.

Amy shrugged. "No big. You know I like this kind of stuff. And while the girls with the Campus Wiccans have been helpful with curbing my, um, darker urges," she breathed out quickly, as if she didn't want to draw attention to her less than pleasant behavior in the past, "They still aren't the most experimental Wiccans around."

Willow snorted. "Yeah, I'm still surprised that they've upped their game from bake sales."

"Oh, no, we still do bake sales," Amy corrected her with twinkling eyes. "After all, it does help us buy our brooms to fly around on."

"Huh?" Willow asked with wide eyes. She knew that flying brooms really did exist in the Wizarding World but she didn't think Amy knew about that.

Amy started laughing. "I'm just kidding, Willow! Please. That's what the stupid frat boys call out when they walk by our bake sales." Her face lost its humor and she scowled. "Man, I'd like to hex those guys real good."

Willow paused, unsure of what to say. In the last month and a half she and Amy had made amends and were working on mending their precarious friendship – but that didn't mean Willow knew exactly what to say in moments like these.

Eyes widening, Amy gasped. "Willow, I'm sorry. I really didn't mean that." She grinned. "As much as I may want to, I will not trap those frat boys into a cage and make them my dancing monkeys."

Feeling relieved, Willow smiled. "That's good, 'cause boys in cages are not a good thing."

"Oh yeah?" Amy raised her brow significantly. "Thought you were back into the penis?"

"Amy!" Willow rolled her eyes. "It's really just one specific penis at the moment." Then she giggled as she realized how odd their conversation sounded at the moment.

"So things are all good with you two?" she asked with a grin.

Willow felt that flutter in her stomach as she thought about Sirius. "Yes," she answered shyly. "He's great. We're hoping, if things with the Big Bad calm down, to take a trip to Portland with some of the others."

"Portland? That's supposed to be quite the magical hot spot," Amy commented. "Sounds cool."

"I know! I can't wait. We're going to get Dawnie a wand and explore a little bit," Willow said in an excited voice. Since Amy was a witch Willow thought that all the 'Statute of Secrecy' stuff didn't apply to her so she knew bits and pieces about Sirius, Dawn, and wand users.

"That's awesome! Wish I could go," Amy grinned.

"MOONY!" Willow and Amy's heads jerked up at the bellow that was coming from upstairs. "WHERE ARE YOU, YOU DAMN WEREWOLF?"

"Werewolf?" Amy gasped. "Is Oz back?" She looked towards the door like she expected to see the wild-haired guitarist at any moment.

Her stomach twisted at Oz's name – she hadn't thought of him in a while. Willow hoped, wherever he was, he was okay. "No, that's Remus Lupin. He's a wizard like Sirius and he came here with Giles and the potentials. They, along with Dawn, have been in a pranking war against each other for the last couple days."

Willow's jaw dropped as Sirius skidded into the room. "Have you seen Moony?" he asked with crazed eyes. "Because I am going to kill him if he doesn't fix me. I am not going to be forced to walk around a gaggle of teenage girls like this," he growled.

Then realizing Amy was there he tossed her a surprised smile. "Oh, hello Amy. Helping Willow with her magical potpourri?"

"Hi Sirius," Amy giggled.

"It's _not_ potpourri," Willow grumbled. "It's a combination of herbs that will create a magical field when laid down in a circle. Perfect for the much sought-after potentials." Giving him a long up and down look she asked wryly. "And just why are you dressed up like a caveman?"

Sirius scowled. "Moony remarked earlier that I was no better than a caveman – don't ask why," he said off of her confused look. "And after my shower I put on my clothes only to realize I was wearing this," he gestured to his leopard print one-shouldered tunic that dropped only far enough to cover the bits that mattered. "No matter how many times I change my clothes – even when I use magic – I am still wearing this."

Covering her hand to hide her laughter, Willow shook her head. "Well, it looks nice on you." And it did. Sirius had become dedicated to several things since coming to Sunnydale – spending time with her, researching how to destroy Voldemort/protect Harry, and improving his magical and physical abilities. The latter was clearly evident now.

"Oh yeah?" Sirius asked with a sly smile as he began walking slowly towards Willow. Her stomach flip-flopped at the promise in his eyes.

"Okay! Well. Seeing how we're done with the spells I better head home." Amy jumped up and began collecting her items.

Willow tore her eyes away from Sirius to say goodbye to Amy. "Okay, well thanks for stopping by, Amy. Tell your dad I said hello."

Amy pursed her lips. "Yeah. Well. Haven't seen him in a while."

Amy turned to leave but Willow stopped her. "Wait, what do you mean?"

Biting her lip, Amy turned and gave Willow a smile. "It's nothing. I just decided to move back into my mom's old house. Needed some time to myself, ya know?"

Willow nodded. She could understand that. Amy was, after all, twenty-two. "I get it."

"Okay, see you later.

"Bye."

Sirius stood behind Willow and ran his hands slowly over the front of her body. "How does that saying go?" he murmured into her ear. "I Tarzan, you-"

"Jane", Willow answered as she turned and kissed him. "So," she smirked. "Isn't this the part where you drag me off to your cave?"

Sirius grinned, picked her up, and threw Willow over his shoulder. He ran up the stairs while grunting like a Neanderthal; which had her shaking with loud laughter.

Later, Willow curled around in the sheets until they were twisted around her like vines. Glancing at the clock she realized it was still early afternoon and that she _should_ get out of bed – but she was currently content in replaying her and Sirius' lovemaking in her mind. He really was a bit crazy – what with the silly Tarzan impersonations – but she loved it. Just a few moments ago her caveman had reluctantly left her when he realized that his clothes were still charmed and went to go find Remus.

"Padfoot! Padfoot!" came a muffled voice to her left.

Willow sat up with a start. Was she going crazy or did the nightstand just talk? She eyed it suspiciously – after all, this _was_ the Hellmouth. She was convinced that even furniture could be evil.

"Padfoot! Come one! We need your advice!"

Ok, now Willow was curious. After all, furniture usually did not ask for advice. Holding the sheets up to cover her chest she slid over and cautiously opened the drawer and peered inside – only to see Harry Potter and Ron Weasley staring back at her.

"Ah!" she shouted and threw her arms up in the air.

"Ah!" they yelled in surprise when Willow's sheet fell.

Gasping, Willow scurried out of view and began getting dressed. "Ron! Harry! Hi!" she called out nervously as she yanked her jeans on. Mentally she yelled at herself for forgetting where Sirius had begun storing his two-way mirror. "What's up?"

"Um, we, ah, see we needed to talk to Sirius real quick," Harry explained, his eyes looking away guiltily.

"Yep, yep. Okay, I'll get him." Now fully clothed Willow picked up the mirror and began walking down the stairs. "How, um, are you guys?" Willow knew her cheeks were flaming red and she was praying that they hadn't seen anything.

"Good, good," Harry replied. "The Yule Ball is happening in a few days."

"Excited?" Willow asked with a grin. Listening to Sirius it seemed the Triwizard Tournament was wreaking havoc in Harry's life but she figured a dance with other schools would at least be fun.

"Um, not exactly. It's why we wanted to talk to Sirius," Harry replied honestly.

Willow found Sirius, still covered in caveman wear, shouting at Moony in the living room and gesturing wildly. She also noticed that several of the potentials – Rona, Vi, and Molly – kept sneaking glances from their hiding spot behind the kitchen doorway.

"Sirius?" Willow held out the mirror. "Harry and Ron need you."

Sirius halted his tirade and widened his eyes in surprise. "Thanks, Willow," he said he grabbed the mirror. "Harry, Ron, what's the matter? Is everything all right?" He sat on the couch and Remus joined him. Willow left the room and went into the kitchen, shooing the potentials away. It sounded to her like some male bonding was going to occur and she didn't want the wizards to be interrupted.

"Um, it's not an emergency of anything," Harry began in an embarrassed tone. "It's just, the Yule Ball is in two days and we're not quite sure what to do."

"Oh." Sirius and Remus shared a knowing look. "Well, for starters, didn't you tell me last time that you both have dates?"

"Yeah," Harry sighed. "I'm taking Parvati Patil and Ron's taking Padma Patil."

"Sisters?" Sirius smirked.

"Twins," Ron corrected.

Sirius let out a barking laugh and elbowed Remus. "Twins, they say! Bloody hell boys, good job."

Remus chuckled at Sirius' exuberant response. His friend so enjoyed it when Harry shared characteristics with James or Sirius himself.

Harry and Ron just shared a look of concern. "Is that good?" Ron asked cautiously.

Quieting his laughter, Sirius nodded. "Definitely."

Remus leaned in to smile at the boys. "Hello Harry, Ron."

"Remus!" they chorused.

"Now, before Sirius gets into a discussion that you are surely not ready for at the moment," here he gave Sirius a significant look as his friend just grinned mischievously, "What is it that you're worrying about?"

"Well, what do we _do_? Do we have the get the girls flowers and is it true that we need to open doors for them, and blimey, do we really have to dance because I have no idea how to dance?" Harry blurted out.

"Oh boy," Sirius breathed. It was moments like now that he felt a flash of pure anger at Peter for depriving Harry of a father – and a godfather – while growing up.

"First off boys, don't worry. The key is confidence. Even if you don't know what you're doing, just bluff it and she'll be impressed." Nodding thoughtfully as he remembered his youth he added, "Women are fairly easy to impress, actually."

"But what if we don't have any confidence?" Ron asked.

"Ron, Harry, don't worry. Just remember to be gentlemen and highly courteous. Get your dates flowers to pin onto their dress when you pick them up. Open doors for them. _Ask_ them to dance, because they'll be mad if you don't," Remus said as he rolled his eyes. "Women love to dance, but Merlin knows why."

"Right, doubt they'll love it if it's with me," Harry scoffed. "McGonagall did a dance lesson for us and I kept stepping on my partner's toes."

Remus and Sirius started laughing at the image. "Don't worry about it, Harry. Your father had two left feet as well but he did alright and luckily your mother loved him enough to overlook it anyway to marry him. I'm sure you can find that, too."

Harry's eyes widened. "Ugh, I don't want to get married, Sirius," he stated in an alarmed voice.

Sirius and Remus could help but start chuckling at the fourteen year old's terrified expression. "Someday you'll change your mind," Remus told him.

"Maybe," Harry admitted half-heatedly.

"Getting back to the dancing part, I would recommend that you boys practice – even if it's with each other," Sirius recommended.

"What, no!" Harry and Ron looked at each other in disgust.

"James and I did it when we were around your age," Sirius defended his idea.

"It's true – you should have seen them waltzing around our room," added a chuckling Remus. "Of course, they spent the first fifteen minutes arguing who would get to lead first."

Sirius shook his head at the silly memories and grinned at the young wizards. "Trust me, boys. Dancing is _the_ best way to get in with the ladies. Best opportunity to find a reason to hold them close and begin the art of seduction," he informed with a wink.

"Seduction?" Ron gulped nervously.

"Honestly, Sirius. They are only fourteen," Remus grumbled good-naturedly.

"Only fourteen? Bloody hell Moony, you know what I was doing when I was fourteen." Realizing what exactly he had been doing, his eyes narrowed at Harry and Ron. "Speaking of which, you boys have been taught the safe sex spell, right?"

"Wha-what?" sputtered Harry while Ron just gawked in shock. "Sirius, you can't be serious."

"Harry, I'm always serious," Sirius grinned. Then his expression turned stern. "Now, I don't know what they teach at Hogwarts but I want you – and you too, Ron, if you don't know yet – to be prepared. So, if you are ever in a situation where it's the right time for you – and for your lady – to have sex I want you to take your wand and-"

"Merlin! Please Sirius, you do not need to tell us what to do with the wand," cried a frantic and embarrassed Harry Potter.

Scowling, Sirius cut off Harry's words with a wave of his hand. "By Merlin, just listen. I want you to wave it over her lower torso and say '_gravida tutela'._ This will protect you from impregnating her and also protect the both of you from transferring any diseases. Trust me," he raised his eyebrows significantly. "It is an extremely handy spell."

Grinning, he continued. "Actually, I used it myself quite a bit at school – er, I mean after school. When I was an adult." Sirius rolled his eyes. "Actually, sod it, I know how boys are and that I probably can't stop you from doing anything stupid, so just make sure you use the protection spell. Oh, and do make sure you stay out of the broom closet on the third floor, because it's right next to an unmarked door which happens to be a faculty member bathroom – and believe me when I say that having the Headmaster accidentally reach into the broom closet looking trying to grab a broom handle, but instead pulling on a different long – thought certainly not that skinny! – item, well that can be both extremely painful and very, very embarrassing."

"Now," Sirius breathed in deeply at the end of his speech. "Any questions?"

Both Harry and Ron looked flustered and wore matching disturbed expression. "Um, I think that's it," Harry answered quickly before Sirius could teach them anything more.

"Good, well if you ever need any more help with the ladies I want you to know you can always ask me!" Sirius beamed. "In fact-"

"Oi!" Ron glanced nervously over his shoulder. "I think someone's coming. We better head off. Nice talking to you Padfoot!"

"Yup, bye Padfoot!"

The mirror went dark as the boys hurriedly put it away.

Sirius frowned as he turned to Remus. "Well?"

Remus shook his head in sheer amazement at how some aspects of his friend's personality would likely never change. "Well, what?"

"How do you think my sex talk went?" he asked with a serious expression that indicated Sirius had really wanted to do a good job with this aspect of his godfather duties.

Biting the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing, Remus merely answered, "Well, I think the boys are certainly more educated now."


	45. Christmas Eve with My Favorite Minion

**Chapter 45: Christmas Eve with the Favorite Minion**

Lucius ran his fingers through his long hair and sighed. With a flick of his wand he poured himself a tumbler of brandy and levitated it to his current position sitting in front of the fireplace. He had been in Sunnydale for a week and he was already getting frustrated by his task. Things were not going as well as he would have liked.

"Drowning your sorrows?" a soft voice floated through the room. Releasing a low chuckle the blond woman – rather, the blond apparition – appeared in the low light of the flickering flames. She gazed around the room and gave him a reproachful look. "And sitting in total darkness, besides the dying embers of the fireplace – how rather depressing, Lucius," she sighed.

He sat up straighter as soon as she had announced her presence. Merlin, he hated groveling but soon – _soon_ – he hoped one day he would not have too. "Master, what may I do for you this evening?" he asked with lowered eyes.

"Lucius, who said I needed you to _do_ anything?" she asked with an arched brow. "Perhaps I just wanted to spend Christmas Eve with my favorite minion?"

His forehead wrinkled in confusion and then she began laughing. Then like lightning her laughter died and her face morphed into one of cold, calculating anger.

She moved towards him like a cheetah observes her prey on the fields of the Serengeti. Her face was hidden in shadow but he saw the flashing white of her wide, predatory smile. Fear bubbled within him and once again the voice in the back of his head reminded him that he no longer served a mortal dark lord, but the entity that created the darkness of evil in the first place. In the last ten weeks since entering into servitude Lucius had given himself wholly to the First but he feared the consequences of his first failure.

"I am very angry with you, Lucius my dear."

Lucius stayed still, much like a creature who attempts to hide from a predator.

"I brought you here for a reason. I gave you the information and power to put this plan into motion so that I would always stay one step ahead of the Slayer and her tag-a-longs. And you have already failed me." The First's voice had lowered considerably from the voice of its current body – Buffy Summers – and Lucius imagined that when he heard it he could hear the screams of people being tortured in a dark pit somewhere far away.

"Master, their actions could not have been predicted," he began in a delicate voice. "You know that they are under my surveillance but they kept that information between the high ranked members of their organization. I had no idea they would-"

"They would what? Draw out my Turok-Han, kill my Bringers, and then kill my precious pet – all the while encouraging hope within their group? Not to mention they took Spike and I am left with no more pets to do my work?" she snarled.

A light shiver ran down his spine at the sense of death the voice promised in its tone.

"At least we know that the Turok-Han's hide is similar to a dragon's and that the wizards can not harm him," he offered in a pleading tone that made him twinge – how Lucius Malfoy hated groveling.

"I already knew that you fool! Why else do you think I wanted the Turok-Han!" the First roared.

Lucius bowed his head. "My Master, I apologize. I will ensure such an action does not occur again."

The air thickened with tangible silence that curled around his throat and Lucius, for one moment, feared he would choke on it.

"You are correct. It will not happen again," she said softly as she gave him a steady stare. "We will need to change the plan, slightly. You need to inspire their trust. The witch is not enough."

He blinked as he processed her words. "But how?"

She gave him a warm smile and laughed lightly. "And that is why I chose you, Lucius Malfoy. No questions, just sheer desire to do my bidding and inflict chaos."

As the First continued on to tell her plans for wedging Lucius into the inner circle of the ridiculously titled 'Scooby Gang', he smiled to himself. It may require a sacrifice of an Unspeakable or two, but it would surely be worth it in the end.


	46. Christmas in Buffy’s Barbie Dream House

**Chapter 46:**

It was late, already one in the morning and Willow realized that technically it was Christmas Day. She was exhausted from working the house reconfiguration spell – also named the 'Barbie Dream House' spell by Buffy. Remus, Sirius, and Kennedy had gone through the house together modifying and adding rooms as per the blueprints that Xander had created with them. Meanwhile Willow had served as their anchor throughout the spell and had been responsible for connecting the four of them using her magic and increasing the strength of the spell. It had been the best way to incorporate Willow's power since she had the inability to use a wand in order to actually perform the spell.

The spell had just finished but everyone else in the house was already asleep in the basement. Since such major modifications took place they had to make sure everyone was out of the rest of the house and since the foundation would be left untouched, everyone was slumber partying it down in the basement.

"Well, it probably wouldn't be fair to claim our rooms while everyone else is stuck asleep in the basement," Remus noted as they surveyed their work in the living room.

"You're kidding, right?" Kennedy snorted with an amused smile.

Sirius glanced over at Kennedy and let out a resigned sigh. "Have to say I'm with Potential Number One on this," he agreed.

"Potential Number One?" she asked dryly.

"You know as well as I do that it's getting to be hard to keep track of you tykes. A numbering system is the best method," Sirius explained with a grin.

Kennedy rolled her eyes.

"Alright, I suppose we could all go to our rooms," Remus agreed.

Kennedy and Willow yawned. "Sounds good to me," she murmured sleepily.

The group began to depart and Sirius grabbed Willow's hand. "Ready, sleepy lady?"

She gave him a brief kiss. "In a moment. You go on without me, I just want to meditate for a bit first."

"You mean I have to go to bed all alone," he pouted.

"Whatever, you're crazy if you think I have the energy for anything anyways," she laughed and rolled her eyes. "G'night," she said as she gave him another kiss.

"Night, love." Then Sirius followed the others up the stairs, leaving Willow all alone. A secretive grin worked its way onto her face as she pulled Sirius' two-way mirror from its hiding place and snuck outside. Glancing at her watch she realized she was a few minutes late.

"Professor?" she whispered as she peered into the mirror.

A smiling white-bearded face came into view. "Willow! There you are. Merry Christmas, my dear!"

This was the third time she had secretly talked to Dumbledore and as always his cheerful voice made her smile. "Merry Christmas, Sir!" she responded. A part of her was annoyed slightly at the fact that everyone seemed to worship Santa but Dumbledore was such a nice guy – and an authority figure – that she couldn't bring herself to say anything.

"How did the remodeling go this evening?" he asked.

"Great, actually! Your tips really worked. And even though the house is a lot more magical now I _think_ I took care of the electricity and magic incompatibility with this spell I designed."

"Indeed?" his blue eyes widened behind his crescent moon-shaped glasses. "If it works you must tell me how you did that. It's partly because no one cares about electricity – it as, after all, rather modern – but I have always been surprised that no wizard or witch has tried to fix that problem."

Willow snickered at the idea of electricity being 'modern'. Wizards really did live in a medieval world. "Of course." Changing subjects, she added, "How go the arrangements?"

"Everything is going as planned. We have an Auror whose mother is a personal friend of mine that was able to be convinced and will be assisting us. I have set up the port-keys and informed the right people. I trust that things on your end are still going well."

"Yes," she nodded. "Remus and Buffy have really come around and we're done every sort of magical ward on this house so everyone will be safe."

"Excellent!" he stated cheerfully. "I do love to help others get into the Christmas spirit! Well, Ms. Rosenberg I must attend breakfast in the Great Hall but do give Luna, Remus, Sirius, and Rupert my regards."

"Sure will! And Professor?"

"Yes?"

Her lips stretched into a wide smile. "Thank you, so much."

Dumbledore gave her a kindly smile. "You are quite welcome my dear. Farewell."

"Bye."

The mirror went dark and Willow tucked it into its velvet pouch. She pulled her sweater tighter and stepped back into the house, smiling at the seventeen different stockings hanging up – one for each person and hippogriff. All the main lights were off but the Christmas lights on the tree and strung around the walls were twinkling in an array of colors. She gazed at the Christmas tree for a moment and sighed in contentment. Willow had always loved their bright lights and they made everything more fun; in fact while growing up she had loved them so much that her parents had reluctantly created a 'Hanukah bush' for her.

But a shadow off to the side of the tree made her pause and Willow instinctively held her hands out, ready to cast a spell. "Who's there?" she asked in a hard voice.

A snort of laughter answered her. "Geez, Will. Don't get your panties in a bunch. Unless of course, it's me that gets to bunch them up." Kennedy leaned forward with a joking leer that was partially covered by hair hung in smooth waves framing her face.

Willow let out the breath that she had been holding. "Kennedy! What are you doing here? I thought you went to bed." She stepped closer and realized the potential slayer was pouring a bottle of Anya's prized tequila into a glass. "And why are you drinking?" she asked in a concerned voice.

"Knew I wouldn't be able to sleep," Kennedy answered with a shrug.

"But, aren't you tired from the spell?" Willow took a seat on the couch next to her and faced the other woman.

"Yeah, the spell was tiring, but it wasn't enough. I figure if I have enough of these I won't have to worry about dreaming while I sleep," she said in a detached tone as she took a sip of alcohol.

"What's the matter?" Willow asked. It bothered her to see Kennedy sounding – and acting – so depressed. After the first day of her arrival where she had shown a smidge of vulnerability in front of Willow the girl had closed off from everyone. She got along okay with some of the other potentials but most people had already written her off as a bitch. It was true that she acted awfully bitchy sometimes but Willow knew there was something more to her. She just wasn't sure what.

Silence soaked into the room until finally Kennedy looked up with shining eyes. "My watcher," she said in a broken voice. "We always had a special Christmas Eve tradition – he would take me out for a day of shopping and exploring in a new city somewhere in the world – gotta love portkeys," she added with a half-hearted attempt at smiling. "Today's the first day we haven't done that together." In a swift movement she downed the rest of her glass. "It sucks," she concluded in a bitter voice.

Willow watched the many expressions roll through the other woman's eyes and she grabbed her right hand. "I'm sorry, Kennedy. Is there anything I can do?"

A beat passed. "Keep me company?" she asked a small voice. "I just don't feel like being alone anymore."

"Of course," Willow answered softly. "Do you, maybe, want to talk about him? Sometimes that helps. What was your watcher like?"

Kennedy folded her legs underneath her and gave her a sad smile. "I don't really know what to say. It's just, he was my Watcher, ya know? But more than that. My father – don't get me wrong, he's great and all – but he's always been really busy. My mother," Kennedy shrugged. "Died when I was younger, about the same time my watcher was assigned to me. My step-mother and my brat of a half-sister are pretty busy spending time in the upper-echelon of high-Wizarding society. My watcher was my real family, at the end of the day. So now, I suppose I have no family," she added in a hard and bitter tone."

Tears began to roll down the other woman's cheeks and Willow felt immensely distressed at seeing the pain that Kennedy had been hiding. On impulse she pulled her into a hug. "I'm sorry Kennedy. But think of it now, you still have a family. Just a new family. All the potentials and Buffy and Giles," she said reassuringly.

Kennedy drew back slightly, their faces less than a foot apart, and stared at her with dark brown eyes. "What about you? Where do you fit in?"

"I-" Willow felt slightly taken aback with the sheer intensity of Kennedy's stare. "I'm part of your family too, just like Dawn, and Xander, and Anya, and everyone else."

Kennedy's lips curled into a smile. "You're a good person, Willow. You know that?"

Willow gradually eased out of the embrace, suddenly afraid that she was giving her the wrong impression. "Oh. Heh, I don't know. I'm not that great of a person, you know. After all, I did almost destroy the world."

Kennedy's eyes narrowed. "Why do you always do that?"

"Do what?" Willow asked in perplexed tone.

"Say such harsh things about yourself. I watched you tonight, Willow. You're a great witch and more powerful than anyone using a wand that I've ever seen. You shouldn't be humble about your powers." Willow could feel Kennedy's eyes assessing her relentlessly and all she could do was shrug.

"You're right – I am powerful. But that isn't necessarily a good thing. You weren't here when I went bad – you don't know."

A slow, sultry grin slid onto Kennedy's face. "Oh, I don't know. I think I would like to see Big Bad Willow."

Willow flinched and gave her a hard look. "No, you wouldn't," she said in a voice darkened by memories of her life-changing actions. She was furious that this girl possessed the gall to actually say such a thing and act so flippantly about her dark past.

Kennedy blinked and bit her lip. Willow stood up and turned her back. "Good night, Kennedy. I hope you get some rest."

"Willow, wait!" A hand grabbed her shoulder and spun Willow around. "I'm sorry, I didn't think before I spoke. Forgive me?" she deplored.

Glancing away, Willow sighed. "Just, ya know, don't act like that. Don't act like it doesn't matter. Because it does. Okay?" Her eyes flickered back towards Kennedy and the girl nodded.

"Sure, of course."

"Good. Um, well, good night Kennedy." She gave her a small smile.

"Night." Before Willow could turn to leave Kennedy pulled her close against her body in a tight hug that made Willow gasp in surprise. "Thanks for talking to me," Kennedy mumbled into the crook of Willow's neck; her warm breath causing Willow to shiver.

"Of course. Anytime." Willow pulled back, more than a little perturbed about the effect that Kennedy had on her just then. Quickly she made her way upstairs and slid into bed with Sirius. Willow snuggled close to Sirius and breathed in a sigh of relief. Kennedy could cause reactions in Willow sometimes, but this was right where she was supposed to be.

* * *

Something soft pressed against Willow's forehead and following that it landed on both of her cheeks. "Merry Christmas, my favorite Jewish girl," she heard Sirius murmur.

"Mmm. Merry Christmas," she replied in her half-awake state.

"Come on, I hear people downstairs! Time to open presents!" he said in a soft, exuberant voice.

"Mmm. Sleepy. And Jewish. Sleep now," she yawned as she tugged the covers over her head.

The covers were yanked back down and soft lips attacked her own. Willow quickly found herself waking up and she opened her lips slightly to allow the kiss to deepen. She pouted when Sirius pulled back. "Mmm, no."

He gave her a lopsided grin. "Awake now?"

She tried to frown but felt the corners of her mouth quirk up. "You're evil."

"Yes," Sirius said with an exaggerated sigh. Then he jumped up on top of the bed and looked down at her. "C'mon, Willow! It's Christmas!"

Willow shook her head and threw on some teen-friendly pajamas. "Alright, sleepy Jewish girl making way here." But even though she was still tired, she found herself smiling at how excited Sirius was. It was remarkable that this would be his first real Christmas in thirteen years – and if everything worked out right, she hoped it would be his best.

Making their way out of the room they had to dodge Chloe and Vi running through the now extended hallway. "This is so cool!" Vi shouted.

Rona, following behind them, stopped to high-five Sirius and Willow. "Dude, this magic house is awesome! Thank you _so_ much – especially because I was 'bout to kill Kennedy for always hogging the bathroom."

"No problem, Rona! Consider it a Christmas present from all of us. We still need to add things like curtains and such but go check out your room," Willow said cheerfully, her tiredness seeping away as she took in everyone's glee. "I think it's on the newly created third floor but it has your name on it so you'll know."

Rona's eyes widened. "Wait, hold up. My _own_ room?"

"Yes," Sirius said with a twinkle in his eye. "We were thinking of shared rooms – which would still be better than the floor – but Kennedy convinced us to give everyone their own room. Although," he admitted, "people may need to start sharing as more potentials arrive."

"Are you kidding? I'm excited to just have a bed as of now," Rona grinned before she left in search of her room.

As soon as Rona departed, Molly and Dawn bounded up the stairs. "Right then, this house is wicked!" Molly said with a wide grin. "I heard we all got our own rooms, is that true?" she asked in her cockney-accented voice.

"Yup! Yours is on the third floor next to Kennedy's," Willow informed her.

"Wait, third floor?" Dawn screeched. "Since when does this house have three floors?"

Sirius shook his head and clapped Dawn on the shoulder. "Dawn, I understand that you're a fledging witch, but you do understand what magic is – correct?" he asked dryly.

"Two words, Black. Silencing, Spell," she said in a threatening tone.

"Sirius, be nice," Willow chided. "It's Christmas." She turned to Dawn and explained. "It would be more difficult to extend the length of the house so we simply added an extra floor."

"Um, is that safe? Like, will we fall through?" Dawn asked nervously.

"No," Willow shook her head. "It's safe. And we camouflaged it on the outside so our neighbors don't even notice the crazy new renovations."

"Cool!" Dawn exclaimed as shot after Molly.

Chuckling, Sirius and Willow headed downstairs where only Kennedy and Remus were standing by the presents under the tree – everyone else was busy inspecting the house. "It appears as if everyone is enjoying their Christmas present," Kennedy observed with a smile.

"Good job, Moony," Sirius said with a clap on the back. "You did a great job researching all of this."

Remus just shrugged and smiled. He was never much one for compliments.

For a while they just sat there, grinning, as they listened to everyone shout as they found each new room. The biggest reaction of all came from Buffy herself, who skidded down the stairs and eyed each of them. "I can't believe you guys did it," she said as she bounced up on down on her toes and pulled Willow into a hug

"Did what?" Willow asked in confusion

"My room. Two closets. Two! Closets! And walk-ins!" Her eyes were lit up and her smile stretched across her face.

Sirius jerked a thumb in Remus' direction. "That was all Remus. I was actually trying to get them to take out your closet completely," he grinned.

Buffy stuck her tongue out at him. "And that is why Remus is officially my favorite wizard!" To Remus' surprise, Buffy pulled him into a tight hug as well. "Thank you!"

"Oh, you're welcome," Remus answered with a smile – a bit off-guard by the surprise hug. He was still getting used to the easy acceptance and strong relations within the Scooby Gang.

"I dare say, this bit of magic is most impressive," Giles commented as he walked in and took a seat next to the tree, "How you managed to fit in a library in between the kitchen and living room, I will never know, but it is absolutely breathtaking. Well done."

"It took a lot of preparation, but hopefully the modifications will prove helpful," Remus stated.

"So," Buffy drawled as her eyes lit up at the sight of the array of multi-colored wrapped presents. "Can we open the prezzies now?"

"Buffy," Giles sighed. "We do need to wait for everyone first. Give them some time to explore a bit further."

Buffy let out a long sigh, folded her arms, and sat next to Remus on the couch. "Fine," she grumbled. "But isn't part of me being the boss means that I get to decide when we open prezzies?"

Giles didn't bother replying; her merely rolled his eyes and began cleaning his glasses.

"You know, as much as I hate to admit it – Buffy does have a point," Sirius recognized. He grinned mischievously, said 'Sonorous', and tapped his throat. Then his voice echoed throughout the three floors and basement of the house, causing those around him to wince and cover their ears.

"OI! ATTENTION ALL YANKS AND FELLOW ENGLISHMAN! THE OPENING OF PRESENTS WILL COMMENCE IN EXACTLY 60 SECONDS. ANYONE WHO IS LATE WILL HAVE THEIR PRESENTS DONATED TO ME, MASTER OF CHRISTMAS CEREMONIES!"

Feet, especially teenage feel, began thundering though the house.

"Was that _really_ necessary, Padfoot?" Remus grumbled.

"Certainly," he replied with an amused smile.

Within the allotted sixty seconds almost everyone was accounted for. Now seated on the couch were Sirius, Buffy, Remus, and Anya. Giles, Xander, and Andrew were seated in chairs while Kennedy, Rona, and Dawn were lounging on a newly summoned couch. Sitting on the floor in between Sirius' legs was Willow, who had Sirius absently playing with her hair; while Luna, Vi, and Chloe also had claimed spots on the floor.

"Wait, where's Spike?" Buffy asked as she scanned the room; not even noticing the grimace that graced Giles' face.

"He's still down in the basement, doing a good impression of Angel's broody routine," Dawn informed with an eye roll. "Someone should send Angel here to give him pointers though – his brooding still falls short of Angel's."

"Angel does not brood better than me!" they heard a miffed muffled British voice float up from the basement.

"Spike, come on! It's Christmas! Stop sulking and come on up!" Buffy called.

He didn't answer.

"Guys, just hold off on the prezzies for a sec, 'kay?" Buffy huffed as she stood up and made her way to the basement.

Once she was gone the potentials started sharing looks, as did most of the others in the room.

"I don't get it," Sirius bent down as he whispered into Willow's ear. "What is with Buffy and Spike?"

Willow shrugged. "That's the question I'm not sure if we'll ever get – or want – the answer too."

"So, why do we have to wait around for Spike, anyways?" asked Rona. "He's a vampire – does he even celebrate Christmas?"

"Because, like it or not, he is a part of the family," Dawn defended.

"Yeah," snorted Xander. "If you're talking the Manson family."

"Xander! It's Christmas! The one day in the whole world where we strive for 'peace among men'. Be nice," chided Dawn.

"But Spike isn't a man – he's a vampire. And wasn't he just recently a serial killer?" Chloe asked in an anxious tone. "Because, he kinda creeps me out."

"Oh, trust me. Hang around here long enough and you're bound to kill someone – or attempt to. And as for Spike, he could slaughter a whole house of frat boys without Buffy caring," Anya commented with a roll of her eyes. Next to her, Remus raised a questioning brow at her frat boy example.

"Guys, Spike has a soul now. And he killed people _only_ because the First was controlling him," Dawn argued.

"And how do we know the First won't control him again? 'Cuz, I really, really don't want him to bite me again in that way," Andrew added.

"In that way?" Anya quote. "Would you prefer him to bite you in another way?" Anya asked innocently; resulting in a severe glare from Andrew.

* * *

Meanwhile, Buffy walked downstairs to see Spike staring morosely at the floor from his seat on his stone slab of a bed. "What's up with the Scrooge act?" she asked in a neutral tone.

Spike answered; eyes staring downwards the whole time. "Go back upstairs for some merry holiday times with your misfit pals, slayer."

Buffy sighed as she walked closer and crossed her arms. "Well guess what? You're Misfit Pal Number Six, so come on up."

He shot her a glare. "I don't bloody celebrate Christmas – or at least, not like you lot."

"Things change."

"Not for me."

"Yes, for you," she contested hotly. "Spike, like it or not, you're one of us. And I'm not going to have you sitting in here all sullen like while we celebrate upstairs! So jump off the Misery Express and hop onto the Fun Time Holiday Train, m'kay?"

"Buffy, I just killed a dozen people. I tried to kill the little boy up there. I hurt you. Got tortured by that nasty caveman vamp. Don't much feel like celebrating."

"Spike." Buffy sat down next to him and caught his eye. "That wasn't you, that was the First."

"So, what of it? In the long run, what difference does it make? I'm a killer, Buffy. You should have left me for dead." Buffy opened her mouth to speak but he cut her off. "You know how I used to celebrate Christmas? Do ya? I used to dress up like St. Nick, knock on the windows of little children at night, and once they invited me in Dru and I slaughtered the whole family – and then sipped eggnog by the fire afterwards!"

Buffy paused and bit her lip as the violent images ran through her imagination. Then she shook her head determinably. "That's not you anymore. You have a soul now, Spike."

"Yes, it is," he muttered. "Still here. Urges are still here. To drink. To kill."

"What, you think you have the patent on bad urges? Welcome to the wonderful world of humanity! People get bad urges all the time – but it's our soul and conscience that controls those urges."

Spike's eyes darted away from her intent stare.

"Dammit, Spike. We beat back the First – even if it is only momentarily – and I want a good Christmas. With presents and eggnog and candy canes – and you."

His head whirled around and brown eyes met hazel. Buffy shifted uncomfortably. "Look, you're one of us. So just stop being all Grinchy and come upstairs. Okay?" She jerked up and started walking.

Buffy didn't need to look back to know Spike would follow her. His eyes said it all and a part of her knew – and was scared by – the intensity of his loyalty that silently stated that he would always follow her.

* * *

"Now, now, children. It _is_ Christmas after all," Giles said in a weary voice as their chatter over Spike began driving him slightly mental – never mind that he agreed it would be best if Spike was not here.

"Okay, now we can get to prezzie time!" a high-spirited Buffy cried out as she re-entered the living room, with a sullen vampire in tow. She reclaimed her seat on the couch and Spike scanned the area and realized there were no more seats. He stood over Andrew and gave the geek a menacing look; making Andrew shrink backwards into the plush cushion.

"Pipsqueak, why don't you join the rest of the little girls on the floor and leave the chairs to the men?"

Without a word, Andrew slithered to an open space on the floor and Spike smirked at his successful bullying as he sat down.

"Okay, right. Now that the random threats are over, let's dig into the presents. But first, Remus, do you want to explain to everyone the best present of the day?"

"Of course. As you have likely realized, our ten days of work and the spell last night have finally modified the house. The older and permanent residents of the," Remus smiled wryly, "Scooby Gang have single rooms on the second floor. The third floor will be the location of all the rooms for the potentials and there are enough bathrooms that each person – since there are currently sixteen of us – will have to share with three others. A library and training facility have been added to the second floor and scattered throughout we've added several more dens that you may lounge in."

"No bowling alley?" Dawn sighed.

"Well, we could add one upstairs – of course we would have to take out your room," Sirius teased.

Dawn shot him a glare.

"So basically it was like building a Sims house? With the magical room additions and stuff?" Andrew asked. "That is so cool. Can I be a wizard?"

"No," chorused Remus, Sirius, Buffy, Xander, Giles, Anya, Willow, Dawn, and Spike – essentially everyone who knew him.

"Okay, geez," Andrew muttered as he crossed his arms childishly.

"Okay! Prezzie time!" Buffy reached into the pile of presents and began tossing them at the intended recipients.

Willow leaped onto Sirius' lap and kissed him when she realized that he had somehow gotten her an assortment of crystals that she had been searching for, in addition to silver cross necklace (her last one got ripped off by an angry vampire), and a very naughty piece of lingerie. "Thanks, baby."

"Oh trust me, you wearing that night gown will be thanks enough," he joked with an easy smile. "But thank you for my gift! How did you manage that, by the way?

She grinned. "Remus showed me how to buy the broom in a Wizarding catalog. But that's only half your gift."

His brows furrowed. "What's the other part?"

Willow smiled secretly. "You'll see later."

Across the room, Dawn engulfed her sister in a hug. "I can't believe that you are finally getting me one."

Buffy sighed and gave Dawn a long look before she gave her a small smile. "Well, I guess if you're going to be a bad ass wand witch, you should look bad ass too." Dawn just grinned and stared down at her new leather jacket that looked just like the one that Buffy had worn when she had first started fighting evil.

"Wicked!" shouted Molly as she unwrapped her smoothly whittled stake. "Thanks Xander!"

"No problem. Got one for each of you girls – and Buffy and Giles gave each of you a different kind of weapon on top of that," Xander informed.

"WOW!" Andrew shouted as he unwrapped his book on _'A History of Hogwarts'_. "Thank you Misters Black and Lupin! I can't wait to read this!"

"No problem, Andrew," Remus smiled.

Anya leaned in towards him and Sirius. "Don't you wizard types have a Statute of Secrecy?" she hissed.

"I think that secret's a bit blown with all parties involved," Remus said with a chuckle.

"Besides," Sirius whispered with a wink, "Now we won't get harassed so often by Andrew asking questions about the Wizarding world anymore."

"'Lil Bit," Spike called in an annoyed voice.

Dawn looked at him and hid a smile. "Yes, Spike?"

He held up a box of Nicotene gum and another box of Nicotene patches. "Did you really get me these sodding things as Christmas presents? You do realize that – short of sun, decapitation, and staking – I'm going to live forever, right?"

"Spike, smoking is nasty," Dawn frowned. "You should stop. If not for your health, then everyone else's. Plus, you don't need them to pretend you're all big and bad."

"But I _am_ big and bad," he contested.

Dawn just ignored him and returned to present opening. Unwrapping a long box, she gaped at the contents.

Xander, seeing her reaction, grinned. "That's a combination present from me, Anya, Willow, Sirius, and Remus.

"Oh my goddess. I mean, by Merlin! Bloody hell!" she sang out excitedly.

"Language, Dawn," Giles chided lightly.

Leaping up, Dawn gave the five of them huge hugs. "I cannot _believe_ that you got me a broom! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Giles rubbed her temples gingerly. "Nor can I believe you got such an accident-prone teen a flying broom either," he commented in an exasperated voice.

"Girl's a witch, bout time she got to fly." Sirius' eyes lit up as he realized that he now also had a broom. "Dawn we can go out flying together now!"

Giles just sighed and said a silent prayer that Dawn wouldn't wind up breaking any bones and unwrapped his next gift. "Why, Buffy, Dawn" he said in a surprised voice. He held up his complete set of Sherlock Holmes novels and smiled. "Thank you."

Buffy just shrugged and smiled. "We figured, normally we always get you demony books and that maybe with all this epic evil you might wanna read for fun."

Giles chuckled. "Imagine that."

Xander unwrapped his gift from Anya and raised an eyebrow. "A belt?"

Anya rolled her eyes. "Yes. You need a new one. Your current was is in awful condition and if we're going to be facing big evil I figured you would want to do it with pants and dignity."

"Thanks Ahn," Xander smirked as he gave his former fiancé a hug; rather pleased that she still took care of him.

* * *

Later, around five in the evening everyone was settling into their places at the new and improved Summers dining room table that stretched further than Gumby and shined enough to make both Buffy and Dawn exclaim "Ooh, shiny!" at the sight. Anya had managed to snap Remus into assisting with the food and everyone's stomach was growling as they began bringing out the various dishes.

Anya went to grab the dish containing the glazed ham when her towel slipped away and her palm grazed the side of the dish. "Ah!" she yelped as she jerked away and kissed her burn.

"Anya?" asked Remus who was rinsing the broccoli in the sink. "Are you okay."

Her eyes narrowed at the foolish pan that had dared to harm her. "No," she grumbled. "Stupid human body is susceptible to flaming hot pain, that's all."

"Let me see," he said in a concerned tone.

Anya reluctantly pulled her hand away from her lips and held it out to him.

"Ouch," he murmured as he tenderly held her hand and inspected it.

"Yes. I need to find some of that burn cream that Dawn is always using when she cooks her strange concoctions," Anya said in an annoyed tone.

"One moment," Remus said as he pulled his wand out. Still holding her hand, he said a word in Latin while Anya gave him a curious look. "There. How does that feel?" he asked as he looked her in the eyes.

Anya's brow wrinkled in surprise as she examined her palm. "Hey! You fixed it!" she exclaimed with a grin.

He shrugged. "I'm no medi-doctor but I know a few simple healing spells."

Anya suddenly felt warm as she realized the wizard was still holding her hand. Oh sure, she enjoyed making Remus Lupin twitch every time she flirted with him but she was starting to realize he might be worth more than just as an orgasm friend. He imbued a an amount of kindness that made his eyes glow with this bit of warmth that she found fascinating. She didn't quite understand how it was he could so easily deal with the strange members of this household – like being nice to annoying Andrew or encouraging that strange white-haired potential to talk about potentially imaginary creatures – but it made her like him a bit more for some reason.

She gave him a light peck on the cheek. "Thank you, Remus," she said simply before returning to the evil dish that had burned her.

Remus watched her as she waltzed out of the room and, in a daze, rubbed the cheek that she had kissed.

* * *

"So what is it like, being a vampire?" Luna asked softly as Spike drank out of a cup filled with blood while everyone else waited for all the food to be served before eating. Her blue eyes were riveted to the vampire's movements as she watched from her spot across from him.

Spike licked his lips as he sat the cup down. "What's it like?" he scoffed. "I don't know if my murder of innocents and drinking of blood is good table conversation."

Luna blinked and smiled at the undead being in front of her. "Oh no, not that. I just imagine that living for so long and traveling the world must be fascinating. I've read a lot and traveled some, but not very much."

Spike eyed the young girl in front of him. He was feeling a bit disturbed by the way the girl spoke – her voice had a soft, lilting quality that reminded him of Dru. Even more so, the way she watched him closely made him think of Dru eying a bird in her garden before she snapped her neck. Spike found himself thinking that if the girl ever got turned into a vampire, she'd be a right scary one.

"Yeah, it was all good and fun," he shrugged. "But the traveling arrangements always sucked – it would drive me mad to ride around in the lower decks of a ship."

"Tell me, in your travels have you ever found a Crumple-Horned Snorkack? It's rumored that they've taken up residence in Sweden.

Dawn, who was seated next to Luna, couldn't hide her smile as Spike gave Luna a baffled look.

"A Crumple-Horned Snorkack? What sort of beast is that?"

"Oh, very elusive. Their horns posses a great deal of magical energy though," she answered in her dreamy voice.

"Er, no. Can't say I have," Spike answered in a confused tone.

"Pity. Father and I hope to catch one someday. Many people don't seem to believe that they exist, isn't that silly?"

"Right. Very silly," Spike agreed in a bemused tone.

Further questions from Luna were interrupted by a loud crashing noise in the living room. Everyone looked up in alarm and ran into the other room, with Buffy leading the way. Remus, Sirius, and Kennedy had their wands our while Buffy and Spike entered into a battle formation at the sight of four people sprawled in the room. One woman with bright pink hair was lying underneath the Christmas tree that she had apparently knocked over, a bushy haired girl was lying face down on the couch, a boy with flaming red hair could barely be seen under the bits of torn wrapping paper that no one had thrown away, and a boy with untidy black hair was lying half-way off a chair.

"Who's there?" Buffy called out threateningly.

Sirius blinked as one of the boys began to sit up. "Harry?" he asked in a stunned voice.

"Watch out! Watch out!" Willow called as she pushed through the crowd. "Sorry!" she panted. "I didn't realize that they might be coming early."

"Hey Sirius!" Harry Potter said sheepishly as he stood up unsteadily. "Merry Christmas!"


	47. Remus' Furry Little Problem

**Chapter 47: Remus' Furry Little (Conversational) Problem**

**A/N:**

An amazing bit of thanks to a href=" ." ladyvisionary /a and a href=". " Skyefather /a for the recs! 'Tis appreciated!!!

Oh, and while I don't get to read as much fanfic as I'd like when Musie takes over and free time is dedicated towards writing, but if you, Dearest Readers, enjoy the Marauders, then I would recommend ladyvisionary's 'Roads Travelled' series. Because *sigh*, a person can just not get enough of Sirius & Remus – yeah? ;) There is a *ahem* 'sirius' lack of fun Maurader pics (lol)

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"Hey Sirius!" Harry Potter said sheepishly as he stood up unsteadily from the chair. "Merry Christmas!"

"Harry!" Sirius beamed as he raced over and engulfed his godson in a hug. "How are you my boy? How did you get here? Shouldn't you be at the Yule Ball?"

The two other teens were getting up and looking nervously around at the sixteen people staring at them. Xander, seeing that the pink-haired woman was still underneath the Christmas tree, rushed over and lifted it up.

"You alright?" he asked as he helped her up.

"Wotcher," she said in a dazed voice. "I'm alright. Didn't expect to be landing so close to a tree."

Xander's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Watcher? Oh, I think you have me confused with Giles. He's the watcher."

Her pixie-like face scrunched up at the strange words 'watcher' and 'giles'. "Huh?"

"You were asking for a watcher, right?" Xander frowned as he wondered if the young woman could be suffering from a head injury.

"Oh!" Her eyebrows – which were a surprising shade of dark brown – shot up. "Forgot you were a yank! 'Wotcher' is just a greeting."

"Oh," Xander said as he realized the misunderstanding. "So wotcher is like saying 'pip pip, cheerio?'" he grinned.

The girl let out a giggle and her eyes sparkled with humor. "You i_do/i_ realize most English people don't talk like that, yeah?"

Meanwhile, at the other side of the room, Harry was explaining his visit to Sirius after the teens had greeted Remus and Willow. "We actually just left the Ball about an hour ago at twelve o'clock traveling by a string of portkeys."

"Portkey? Whoa, is that like time travel or something?" Andrew asked; his eyes glowing with interest.

"No. Wizards don't do time travel," Dawn sorted at the outlandish idea.

Sirius, Harry, and Hermione shared a secretive grin.

"A portkey," Hermione said in her best teaching voice, "Is a device that can send one or more people to a previously registered location. It is often a common household object that everyone must touch at the right time."

"Cool," Andrew whispered under his breath as he nodded.

"As for how we got here, Willow worked things out with Professor Dumbledore to send me here," Harry added.

"And of course Ron and I had to come along," Hermione grinned as only a true knowledge geek could. "I mean, an actual Hellmouth! I couldn't believe it when the professor told us. Of course, I've been reading all about them over the last few days – fascinating, really."

Buffy shared a smile with Giles. "Looks like we found your Mini-Me," she whispered as she remembered Giles' beginning intellectual fascination with working at a Hellmouth.

"Well, I'm so happy that you're all here!" Sirius said with a sincere smile. "But, ah, who's that pink-haired girl that Xander is talking to?" he asked as he looked at her with a puzzled expression.

Harry turned and gestured with his thumb. "Oh, that's Tonks. Tonks!"

Tonks looked up from her conversation with Xander. "Wotcher, Harry?" Then in a low voice to Xander she mentioned, "It also is a way of asking someone what is going on." Xander did an 'ah-ha' face and nodded as he and Tonks stepped closer to the rest of the group."

"Right, so the only way everyone would agree on letting me, Ron, and Hermione come on a trip to the Hellmouth – which, by the way everyone else thinks we're visiting Luna since they think you're still evil," Harry informed Sirius.

"Oh, lovely Hello, Harry, Ron, Hermione," interrupted Luna's happy voice behind the taller forms of Kennedy and Vi.

"Luna?" Harry inquired as he looked around. She stepped out and waved, smiling at the sight of others closer to her age.

"Hey, Luna!" chorused the three Hogwarts teens – Harry rather nervously, Ron matter-of-factly, and Hermione cheerfully.

"Anyways," Harry continued. "To let us come they wanted an Auror to take us. So everyone, meet Nymphadora Tonks!"

A chorus of greetings met the witch as she winced in irritation. "Harry," she snapped. "What i_did/i_ I tell you about introducing me to people by my proper name?" She glanced at everyone else. "Please just call me Tonks – I happen to have a crazed woman for a mother who doesn't know how to properly name a child."

Sirius stared at the young woman in amazement. Her hair color was unnatural but he could see a resemblance to his cousin Andromeda in her eyes and certainly her attitude when she corrected Harry. The last time he had seen her the little sprite was just around nine years old. "Tonks? Andi's daughter?" he asked in a quiet voice – not quite believing that it was true.

She gave him a shy smile and folded her hands behind her back. "Hello cousin Sirius. It's been a while."

Dawn, realizing that a possible Full House moment may occur, began ushering people back into the dining room and to stop gawking. Soon it was just Remus, Sirius, Willow, Tonks, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Xander – who found himself compelled to stay for some (pink-haired) reason.

"Tonks, how are you?" he asked, feeling a bit lost for words. After all, how does one properly greet a family member they hadn't seen in thirteen years on account of imprisonment for mass murder?

"Good." Tonks shuffled her feet. "Dumbledore explained everything to mum, da, and me. We thought he was nutters at first. I was at the Hogwarts fight in September and saw you two fighting, after all."

Willow gasped as she recognized the witch who had captured her in a binding curse before Willow had knocked her out with a blast of magic. "I remember you!" Willow suddenly felt extremely embarrassed for knocking out Sirius' cousin. "Sorry, about, um, knocking you out. It's just we were innocent but afraid of getting our souls sucked and then you guys blasted us out of the sky and I tried to explain but then you all started with the cursing and blasting and I i_might/I_ have – okay, I did – overreact but I didn't mean to hurt anyone," she rambled in an attempt to apologize. Never in her life did Willow expect to meet one of the Auror folk from that night.

"Blimey, you talk real fast," Ron breathed out in amazement. Hermione let out a long-suffering sigh and glared at his lack of tact.

Sirius pulled Willow to his side – he could tell she was nervous.

Surprisingly, Tonks smiled. "I'm not going to tell ya that I didn't want to hex the hell out of you at the time, but after Dumbledore explained it I understand now. 'Course, I'm sure nobody at the Ministry would believe me." She rolled her eyes.

"Here," Tonks handed Sirius a thick envelope. "It's a letter from mum. She wanted me to give it to you."

Unconsciously pulling Willow closer to him, Sirius took the envelope and smiled. "Thank you, Tonks." He glanced at the newest arrivals. "I know it's more like one in the morning for you lot, but are you hungry? We're just about to have Christmas dinner."

Ron's eyes lit up. "Sure!"

Hermione rolled her eyes at Ron in an exasperated fashion. "That sounds good. I suppose we should get used to the new time zone if we're going to be here for the rest of break."

"Great! Er, I suppose first I should show you to your rooms in case you want to get settled?" Sirius asked, although anyone could tell he would rather be doing anything else – everyone could smell the heavenly aroma of dinner waiting for them."

"It's no problem. I can take their luggage up. Will, where are their rooms?" Xander asked.

"I thought Hermione could share with Luna, the boys at the empty one at the end of the hall, and – since Kennedy is the oldest – that Tonks could stay with her"

"Oh, I can help you with the luggage," Tonks told Xander as the others began drifting into the dining room. For one, she was not sure what a person said to a long-lost relative and even more so – after seeing the Dark One in action almost four months back – Tonks was feeling a bit skittish to be around her, even if she wasn't evil anymore.

"Great," Xander smiled at her. "This way," he gestured as he began walking up the stairs.

i'_Plus/i'_, Tonks thought as she followed behind him, i'_this one's rather nice to look at – nice bum as well_.' /i

* * *

Christmas evening passed remarkably quickly as the newest visitors to 1630 Revello Drive became acquainted with the current tenants and the operations of the aptly named 'Slayer Central'. Sirius, Remus, Harry, and Ron quickly delved into conversation, discussing everything from the Quidditch World Cup to gossiping (although they would never call it such a thing) about life at Hogwarts. Hermione was seated next to Luna and as soon as the year four witch realized that a vampire sat across from them, she joined Luna in rapid-fire questions directed at Spike. Tonks engaged in conversation on the matter of dark creatures and slaying them with both Xander and Buffy.

Several of the younger slayers, in particular Chloe and Molly, giggled amongst themselves at the sight of Harry and Ron and discussed the boys' finer attributes. Anya spent time reminiscing on her former, bloodier demon days to an enraptured Andrew and Vi – all the while shooting the occasional glare in Tonk's and Xander's direction. Willow, meanwhile, spent some time talking to Giles and Dawn but mostly she observed Sirius and the gregarious energy he radiated when speaking to his godson – needless to say she was most pleased with herself.

* * *

"Oi! Toss it here, Dawn!" Ron cried out exuberantly as Harry tossed their make-shift quaffle – which was an old football Dawn had borrowed from a neighbor.

Dawn zoomed upwards in the space of the Summers' backyard – nicely hidden from Muggle view thanks to a spell by Sirius and Remus that had Muggles seeing nothing but empty air – and groaned when Harry came out of nowhere and intercepted it. While Dawn had picked up broom riding quickly, she was no match for Harry. He spared her a brief grin before tossing it to Sirius, who then scored in their Quidditch 'hoop', which was really a couple of Buffy's old hula hoops from growing up.

Sirius and Harry cheered and they spun in circles on their brooms just as Anya blew the whistle. "Game Over!" she called.

"By one lousy score," Ron grumbled as he landed. "'Sides, this isn't even real Quidditch. Just some game that Harry and Sirius made up."

"Yeah, it _is_ awfully interesting how you both keep winning," Dawn smirked at her magical education instructor and Harry.

Sirius shrugged and gave Dawn an innocent smile. "Dawn, I have no idea what you are talking about. Besides, if we were cheating don't you think Remus or Anya would have called us on it?"

Dawn squinted her eyes and glanced at the two supposed 'referees' who were too busy chatting to recognize her jutting her thumb at them. "Right," she said drolly. "Like those two would notice an earthquake, much less your numerous fouls." Harry and Ron snickered at her statement.

Sirius smirked as he glanced at Remus and Anya. In the last week since the Hogwarts group had arrived those two had been spending more time together. Remus swore it was because he conducting research on the demon world and Wizarding history, just in case Rupert decided to hire him on permanently as a tutor of some sort (if they all survived the First, that is). Anya, curiously, had begun to pay Remus even more attention after seeing Xander and Nymphadora – 'i_Tonks_/i, Sirius corrected himself – hitting it off. Sirius only hoped that the ex-demon wasn't using his friend because Remus sure could use a bit of romantic happiness.

"So, does that mean you want to go again?" Sirius asked with a mischievous smile and he wrapped an arm around Harry's shoulders. "Because we'd be more than happy to prove our superior skills again!"

Dawn rolled her eyes and grabbed her broom. "Fine," answered before wrapping an arm around a suddenly red-faced Ron and whispering fervently to him.

* * *

"So, I've told you some of my demon day secrets. What about you?" Anya asked breezily. She glanced at Sirius, Harry, Ron, and Dawn playing and blew her whistle once she saw Sirius score. Since he had bribed her earlier with a shiny amount of Wizarding money, she shouted "Game over!" and turned back to Remus.

"Me?" he asked warily.

"Yeah, you're a werewolf three nights out of the month. Got any crazy stories?" She noticed his spine straighten and how he suddenly was no longer looking her in the eyes. Sirius had mentioned that Remus was sensitive about his werewolf side so this was the first time Anya had asked about it. Which, quite frankly, she was proud of herself for waiting and biting her tongue for a while.

"Uh, Anya, my 'furry' problem is not something I enjoy discussing," he muttered evasively.

Her eyes widened in shock. Anya was a freak, yes, but that was one taboo she had not yet indulged in. Remus might be very fun indeed, in between the sheets. "Oh, I didn't know. I suppose I could understand you not wanting to discuss that. It is rather uncommon."

Remus let out a sigh of relief at not having to discuss it. "Yes, it is." He looked away; sure that Anya must be judging him in her mind.

"So, back to the werewolf deal, do you have any stories about that?" Anya would be very un-Anya like and respect his wish not to discuss his furry lifestyle. Which really must mean that she was feeling something for the man, because goddess knows she wanted to ask him what being a furry was like.

"Ah, what?" Remus asked, surprised that after deciding not to discuss it Anya would bring it up again.

She gave him an exasperated look and rolled her eyes. "Werewolf. Stories. Duh."

"Anya, I thought we agreed not to talk about my, er, furry little problem." His fingers clinched nervously. He didn't want to admit it, but he liked Anya. Merlin knows why, she was certainly i_different_/i from most women he knew. But they had been spending an enjoyable amount of time together and he didn't want her to think differently of him if he discussed his transformations – especially because no one even knew those details of his life, save the Marauders.

Anya's eyes had glanced down when Remus mentioned his problem was 'little' and she felt a sense of disappointment. But then she remembered that men never assessed themselves negatively when it came to penis size out loud so she realized she must have misunderstood. "Yeah, I know," she said slowly like he was hard of hearing. "I will not ask about your furry sexual life. I am, however, asking about your werewolf experiences, since I told you my demon day stories."

"Wha-what?" Remus sputtered as his face reddened considerably. "Anya, I -" He shook his head. "I don't indulge in sexual activities while I am a werewolf, if that is what you are asking." Was this a new proposition of hers? Merlin help him if the woman _igot off/i_ on having sex with transformed werewolves! His head cocked to the side as he stared at her in confusion. "Wait, what i_are_/i you asking?"

She gave him a curious look. "I wasn't asking if you had sex as a werewolf, although that is good to know. That would be rather unpleasant. I mean, mystical syphilis is one thing but rabies would certainly be another, worse, level."

"Oh." Remus felt like he was missing something here but he decided to just brush it off. Conversations with Anya usually did entail some bit of confusion anyways. "Well, Anya, I don't like to discuss my furry little problem – which is how Sirius and I call it-"

"You're shitting me. Sirius is in on it too? Does Willow know? Because she was recently a lesbian but I don't think she's that kinky," Anya said in amazement. Then she frowned as a terrible thought came to her – one that if Remus replied yes to she would never try to have sex with him again.

"You don't dress up as bunnies, ever – do you?" she asked worriedly.

"What?" Remus shouted in alarm. "Anya, what are you talking about?" Remus was drowning in the deep pools of Anya's bizarre conversational skills and he was praying for a life preserver.

"You're a furry," she said slowly again, like he was slower than Xander's weird uncle. "And you and Sirius dress up to have furry sex. So my question is if you ever dress up as an evil bunny because if you do, well mister," she shrugged. "I'm afraid we can no longer enjoy time together."

Remus began laughing, softly at first until it burst into a deep, throaty chuckle. "Anya," he finally gasped. "I have a feeling that we are holding two separate conversations. I have no idea what 'furry sex' is but I do not do that – and certainly not with i_Sirius_/i." He shuddered as he spared a glance towards his friend. "And I certainly do not dress up as anything, ever – especially a bunny."

Letting out a loud breath, Anya held a hand to her heart. "Oh, thank god. I would have been devastated if you were a bunny lover!" Then she mentally recounted their conversation. "You said you were a furry – well, that you had a furry problem. Furries are people who engage in the kinky sex while wearing an animal costume."

Remus' face got considerably paler with each word.

"So you're not a furry?"

"No," he choked out in an appalled tone. "I certainly do not have sex in an animal costume – I much prefer the old fashioned way." He couldn't help but grin at her – even though he promised himself already that he would i_not_/i be having sex with one Ms. Anya Christina Emmanuella Jenkins. She deserved better than him and he especially could not do so when he was a teacher, a person of authority, in the Summers' home.

"Oh, well that is excellent news," she said brightly. "But it made me think of a new question – one that is also very important."

Remus' stomach twisted nervously – one could never know what to expect from Anya. "Yes?"

"What is your opinion on bunnies? Have you ever eaten them as a werewolf? And I'm hoping you're gonna say yes, because they are evil, dastardly creatures," she asked him in a tone that indicated that she was, amazingly enough, dead serious.

* * *

The new training room was rectangular, had a smooth wood floor, and currently held Buffy and Giles leading six potentials in training while being observed by Xander, Tonks, Hermione, and Willow. Buffy was demonstrating an intricate kata that consisted of numerous kicks and punches as the potentials followed her movements, while Giles quietly corrected them when they were wrong.

"That's beautiful," Hermione whispered as she leaned forward from her seat on the bench that ran alongside the east wall. Sandwiched between Willow and Xander, the two Scoobies shared a smile at the girl's enthusiasm. Since her arrival Hermione had latched onto Willow – for some unknown reason avoiding any situation that involved Ron which excluded her from spending time with Sirius and Remus– and had pestered her and the other Scoobies with questions. The girl had a great desire to learn and she was fascinated by the stories Xander told her and Tonks about living on the Hellmouth and all the Dark Creatures the Scoobies had encountered.

"Interesting" Tonks mused. "Bit of those moves – the footwork – reminds me of the katas we learned in the Dueling Class at the Auror Academy. However, I like some of Buffy's moves a bit more since ours is regulated to footwork and wand work."

"They don't teach you physical fighting?" Xander asked in surprise. After all, Tonks had told him the Aurors were the 'police' of the Wizarding World and he couldn't imagine that their training would be so limited. "What happens if you lose your wand?"

Hermione noticeably perked up to hear the answer.

Tonks smiled grimly. "Well, if you lose your wand your plumb well screwed. Best bet is to hide behind something sturdy."

"What?" Xander asked. "I can't believe that. After all, we've taken on magic users and demons with our two hands- or, well, the occasional rocket launcher," he admitted.

Tonks eyes widened and Hermione looked at Xander like he was off his rocker.

"Basically," he continued, "If you train to fight without magic I bet you could still take out a wizard."

Tonks nodded in thought. "Perhaps you've got a point. Wizarding society frowns on physical fights – it's always magic – so they don't stress physical aptitude as much; something about fighting with your fists being seen as primitive."

"Since he got here, Sirius has started a workout regime. He says it's something the old Order of the Phoenix used to do – it helps with having stamina in battle and dodging curses," Willow added helpfully.

"Wotcher, really?" Tonks had finally gotten over her discomfort with both Sirius and Willow and had become quite taken with her second cousin. If he did it, it might be time for her to do something similar.

"What's the Order of the Phoenix?" asked Hermione, missing nothing as always.

"Oh." Willow wasn't sure if that information was confidential, but since it had happened so long ago she didn't think it mattered. "The Order was a top-secret group that Dumbledore created during the war against Voldemort." Willow noticed that Tonks jerked at the mention of his name. Sirius had explained that to her but it was the first time she had seen anyone do it. Which honestly, reacting to a name didn't make any sense to her, but to each their own.

"And Sirius was in it?" Hermione asked with bright, inquisitive eyes.

"Yeah. Him and Remus and Harry's parents. I'm not really sure who else – but he did say that a lot of the members died."

Hermione turned inward to process that information silently. After all, the Order of the Phoenix was certainly never mentioned in any history book that she had read!

Xander, noticing that Hermione had moved on to ask Willow more questions about the slayers, turned to casually look at Tonks observing the potentials. She had a fair complexion that contrasted prettily with her current bubblegum pink hair (Xander had learned quickly that Tonks could change her looks at will), a heart-shaped face, and dark eyes that always seemed to be sparkling with mischief. In no way was she what Xander thought a witch would be like. From previous conversations with Sirius it seemed that the Wizarding world was highly old fashioned, like something out of the Middle Ages – especially when it came to clothing. But Tonks wore jeans and random band shirts – today one that said the 'Weird Sisters', whoever they were – everyday.

She was pretty, funny, laughed at his jokes, and even flirted with him – meaning that Xander was assuming she was evil. After all, wasn't that a requirement of any girl that was interested in him? Even Cordy had an evil mean streak and Anya had been a former demon. Of course, when he had asked Sirius last night if Tonks had any demon in her, the wizard had hexed him with bright pink hair for asking such a crazy question about one of the two relatives he actually liked.

Luckily, Sirius had fixed it before Tonks saw him.

So now that Xander was pretty positive that she wasn't evil, he had decided to ask her out. After all, she was leaving later this week. And while he knew there wasn't much point in going on one date with her when she was leaving anyways, there was something telling him to chance it. Maybe it was because there was a chance the world was going to end soon, if the First had its way. Maybe it was because Anya had been cuddling up to Remus more often. Regardless, he was going to do it.

He took a deep breath, and glanced at Hermione and Willow to make sure they were still in their own world of knowledge geekiness.

"So," Tonks started before he could open his mouth. "When do you expect Buffy to take the potentials out hunting? Merlin knows I'd love to bag me a vampire or two. In one of my first Auror assignments I did have to take on a vampire who was stalking and threatening a family…"

Xander started to zone out as he became mesmerized by her rosebud tinted lips moving. He started to feel himself lose his nerve. He was, after all, not really anything special. Carpenter guy, yeah. But a witch doesn't need a carpenter – that's what magic is for. And she had a prestigious job in her world. Which, sure, was pretty much the same 'job' he had held for seven and counting years – minus using a magic wand, of course.

So maybe, maybe it did make sense. After all, he did notice how she found excuses to touch him – like last night when Dawn's cleaning spell had back-fired and the plates floating towards the sink had taken a detour to spill spaghetti sauce on him. Tonks had just giggled and wiped his shirt with a towel before remembering to use a cleaning charm.

Ok, he would do it. He would just say it. "Well, we should go out, maybe, tonight?" he blurted. 'i_Ugh, idiot_/i,' he immediately thought. i '_Smooth_.' /i

A smile lit up her face. "Perfect!"

"Perfect?" he repeated in surprise.

"Yes, thank you. When I started asking you about patrolling I wasn't sure if you would want to take someone inexperienced like me, but this is great!"

Xander suddenly realized that he should not have zoned out because he wasn't quite sure what he had asked her to do. "Patrolling? Yeah, that's what you wanted to do?" he asked in a tone that he hoped showed that he completely knew what she was talking about and was merely double checking.

"Of course," she laughed. "Oh this'll be great, can't wait to write Moody." She frowned. "Although he doesn't send post much lately anymore."

"Wait, did you say that you are going patrolling tonight?" Hermione asked as her head snapped around to face Xander. "Oh, can I go? That would be such a great learning experience and I bet if I wrote a paper on it Moody may give me some extra credit!"

"Hey yeah!" agreed Willow. "It might be good to take the Hermione and the others out on a field trip before they leave. It would be very educational."

"Er." Xander sighed. Dammit. There went his attempt at taking Tonks out on a date.

* * *

**A/N:**

I do hope you enjoyed this chapter :) In particular, I (as always) loved writing the Anya/Remus scene, lol…I'm curious how many people I confused until Anya blurted out what she had been thinking ;)

And a special note…. I think several chapters ago I may have stated how much of this story is left. Well, Dearest Readers, I was visited last night by my magical muse and wrote out a detailed chapter outline for the rest of the story, about 25 more chapters (Yay!). I certainly did not plan for this story to be so long but Musie whispered all these crazy fun twists and turns that I cannot deny her :D So here's hoping that this story will be finished in the next 2ish months and that you will continue to enjoy it!

_**References:**_

*.org/wiki/Fursuit --Ok, Furries are -oddly enough real- and here's my proof. I saw a special on MTV once and I was a college mascot so I have certainly heard the jokes often enough, lol. I thought that Anya would definitely know what a 'furry' was, haha

*Thanks to AllenPitt for giving me the idea of Anya asking Remus his stance on bunny eating ;)

*Kata- .org/wiki/Kata


	48. Team Slayer V Team Wizard

**Chapter 48: Team Slayer v. Team Wizard v. Team ?**

Bahhh…. I feel sick and can't sleep, even though its 3am-ish *sigh* = update for you! (Here's hoping tomorrow at work is relatively painless!)

Mad crazy thanks to heiressofanor for the rec! 'Tis appreciated greatly!!

* * *

Buffy eyed the wand movements of the fledging witches and wizards with a critical eye. Remus and Sirius had been leading Dawn, Luna, Harry, Ron, and Hermione in Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons for the last hour and a half. Dawn was, scarily enough, picking up the spells very quickly – and it was scary because she was learning spells at the year four level that the other teens were at. Buffy felt very uneasy about Dawn's newfound abilities. On one hand, she was happy for her. In the last year Dawn had began studying some of the ancient languages in an effort to fit in with the 'Scooby Gang' and be helpful, but it was obvious that her sister wanted to do more. With her new witchy abilities Dawn could finally help out in a much needed way and (hopefully) be able to finally take care of herself.

But still… After everything that happened with Willow, Buffy was very nervous about Dawn becoming a witch. Sirius and Remus discussed with Buffy about how powerful they could tell that Dawn would become someday – which was why the girl needed training. But that power worried Buffy. After all, she loved Dawn, but Dawn was still her awkward younger sister. The idea of i_her/i_ becoming powerful…? It made Buffy's head hurt to even think about it.

"So?" Sirius questioned as he plopped down next to her on the bench in the training room.

"So what?"

He threw a hand out in the directions of the teens. "What do you think of their progress?" This was the seventh 'DADA' (as Sirius called it) lesson that they had held since the arrival of Harry and the others.

Buffy nodded slowly, her eyes following the white mist coming out of Luna's wand. "It seems good," she answered in a non-committal way. "But what's that spell supposed to do? Create a ghost to scare the bad guys?"

Sirius let out an exaggerated sigh and rolled his eyes at her forgetting such an important spell to him. "That's a Patronus. Bloody saved my life when Harry perfected it this past June and used it against the Dementors."

"Soul-sucking guys?" Buffy wondered if her ex-roomie Kathy was related to them at all.

"Yes. They are dark creatures who feed off happiness and seemed – until I got here and learned about the First – to be the embodiment of evil. Moony thinks the spell might be able to repel the First next time It makes its presence known. Not for good, of course, but at least provide some momentary relief."

Buffy found herself smiling – even though the idea of the First returning made her want to kill something. Or vomit. Or, ya know, both. "Kinda like spraying water on a misbehaving kitty?"

Sirius gave her this odd look – the kind he always got when Buffy used some 'bloody Muggle references' that he didn't understand. "Yes, I supposed it would be something like that."

"That could be cool." But Buffy knew it didn't matter. What they were up against needed more than some spell that sounded like a Tequila brand. Still though, she didn't want to rain all over Sirius' parade. He had been so happy lately with Harry being here and really seemed to think that teaching Dawn and Luna defensive spells would help with the Hellmouth madness.

"Where's Kennedy? Why isn't she training with you?" Buffy asked.

"Ah, little chit professes to already know every damn thing. Besides, she's out on one of her runs," Sirius said in an annoyed tone that Buffy couldn't help but smirk at.

"Okay, first, I hate that she always has to do that – it's like she's _trying_ to get into a fight by going out on her own. I try to stop her but she says she only goes out in the daytime so it's not a big deal; that she needs 'alone time' to do her exercises," Buffy rolled her eyes. "Two, what the heck does 'chit' mean?"

"It's not a nice word back in the homeland," Sirius answered with a sly grin.

"Still not liking her?" Buffy asked with a raised brow.

"Gee, I could I not like the woman who keeps trying to flirt with Willow?" he asked dryly.

"Don't worry about it," Buffy clapped him on the back with a friendly smile. "They talk about magic things but Willow only wants you in that special naked way."

Sirius just grunted in response.

"So," he said in a brighter voice as he changed the subject. "What do you think about taking the kids out slaying?"

"Your first mistake is calling them kids; like I would want _kids _out in danger. Your second mistake is thinking that slaying is some type of adventure," Buffy responded with narrow eyes. "It's not a game, Sirius. I don't want them to get hurt. I wish Willow never would have said anything in front of Hermione. That girl is like a pit bull when she wants something."

"Neither do I," he argued. "But Harry and the others will be fine. You said it yourself – the First is taking a break and its killer vamp is dead. Come on, Buffy," he pleaded with wide brown eyes. "This will be a great experience for Harry and the others." He kept the fact that it would be 'fun' to himself – he doubted that reason would win Buffy over.

"I'm not Willow," Buffy smirked. "Your puppy dog eyes will not work on me." Then she frowned as she realized something. "And don't do the Animorph dog thing, cuz that's all sorts of freaky," she said with a slight shiver.

Changing tactics, Sirius' face sobered and he gave her a heady stare. "Buffy, they will be fine. Besides, we have magic – they won't get hurt," he promised in a serious tone. "There's a reason why the Slayer never knows about the Wizarding world – because we can take care of dark creatures on our own."

Buffy sighed and looked at Remus and the teens warily. They were laughing as Hermione did some spell that shot Ron ten feet backwards onto some hastily conjured pillows. "You know I don't like magic, Sirius. I don't trust it."

Sirius gave her a skeptical look and laughed. "Buffy, you i_are/i_ magic. Your sister's very existence is magic. It's all around you. You really should get over these odd, negative feelings towards it."

Crossing her arms, Buffy just stared at him in silence.

"Alright, alright," he raised his hands. "How about this? Since you seem so anti-magic, we make a little bet." A smile played along the corners of his lips, but his face was impassive besides that. Sirius had quickly learned that Buffy had a competitive streak and thought this new tactic could work.

"A bet?" One thing she had learned since letting the escaped wizard live with her – you could never underestimate Sirius Black and his penchant for sneakiness.

"You take your potential slayers out, just like you were planning. But we take the Dawn, Harry, and the others out as well. Whichever team bags the most bad guys – be it Team Slayer or Team Wizard – will prove which method of magic is superior. Which of course," he grinned, "will be us wizard folk."

Biting her lip in contemplation, Buffy tried to think of all the bad things that could happen. But then again, with the First out of commission for now and the fact that it was hard to get the jump on a wizard…The kids would probably be okay. Plus, she so wanted to wipe the smirk of Sirius' face. Wizards being better her ass!

"Okay," Buffy answered in a resigned tone. "But," she interrupted with a triumphant smile, "Losing team has to do a task of the winning team's choosing."

"Fine," Sirius grinned.

Buffy couldn't i_wait/i_ to have the wizards replicate the latest season of Jimmy Choo shoes!

* * *

Sirius rubbed his hands gleefully as he looked out at the gathered crowd. "Alright, tonight we'll be splitting up into two teams. Xander and I will be leading Team Wizard-"

"Xander isn't even a wizard," Buffy grumbled loudly. "He should be on my team. He's got one of the highest kill counts out of all of us."

"Right, but each team needs an equal number of experienced Sunnydale Hellmouth personal," Dawn reminded her gleefully. "So we get Xander. Not our fault that he's just one of the greatest hunters of vampires – that's not a slayer – i_ever_/i."

Xander saw Tonks giving him an appreciative look out of the corner of his eye – he was pleased that he had asked Buffy and Dawn to make him sound good in front of Tonks. He owed them many Twinkies.

"But I should be on Sirius and Remus' team instead of Xander!" Andrew noted in a disgruntled tone as he crossed his arms. "After all, I do magic. Or, well, used to," he added quickly at Buffy's hard look.

"And how will your evil demon summoning be useful to us?" Anya snorted. Then her eyes lit up as she appraised Andrew in a new light. "Ooh, he could conjure demons that we could kill! It would make hunting go so much easier! Then we would win!"

Andrew shook his head eagerly. "Yes! I could be helpful! Anya, as the oldest and wisest of us all understands that."

Giles tried to cover up a snort of laughter while Anya, oblivious, smiled smugly.

"While a good idea, Andrew, it is probably not wise to use your powers for evil," Remus reminded him patiently.

"Oh, alright," Andrew sighed as he began sulking silently.

Continuing, Sirius said, "Team Wizard will also consist of Willow and Anya as the leading Scoobies with Tonks, Hermione, Dawn, Harry, and Ron rounding out the team."

"Why aren't I included as a leading Scooby?" Dawn whined. "I've killed a couple vampires before!"

"Because, Dawnie, you're still more 'Scrappy' then 'Scooby'. But never fear! Tonight could be your night to earn you 'Vampire Kill' badges require to ascend to the next level," Xander explained to her.

"Ugh, never use the word ascend, Xander," Buffy griped. "Anyways," she said in a brighter voice. "i_My_/i team, aka the best team, will include Giles as our token smart person, Spike as our token vampire-"

Spike rolled his eyes.

"-with the potentials Kennedy, Luna, Molly, Vi, Chloe, and Rona. Plus Andrew. Go Team Slayer!" Buffy shouted as she shot a gleeful look towards Sirius. She was going all out tonight.

"But shouldn't Luna and Kennedy be on our team?" Harry asked. "They are witches, after all." He glanced over at the two witches with an unreadable expression.

"Aha, dear Harry. They are potentials first, and thus mine," Buffy grinned. "We are so going to slay the most baddies tonight."

"We'll see about that," Sirius countered with a competitive gleam in his eye. "Team Wizard – move out!"

"Come on Team Slayer!"

As the two squads began walking out Ron turned to Harry. "Blimey, you think Buffy's competitive enough that she'd stake Spike just to get another point?" he asked in a low voice.

Harry chuckled. "Heck, if I was a vampire I think even Sirius would consider staking me just to score a point."

* * *

"Okay girls, this cemetery is like the resort town for vamps. So stick in your pairs and remember the rules. Rule one?"

"Don't die," the potentials answered Buffy in unison.

"Rule Two?"

"Remember that the vamps have the power," they droned on.

"Rule Three?"

"Sarcasm and quips are our second best weapon after a stake."

Buffy grinned. "Good girls." She turned towards Giles. "Don't 'cha think?"

"Lovely. An army of potential slayers just like you. I think I see an early retirement in my future," he muttered dryly at the thought of mini-Buffys running around.

"Think of the bright side, mate. Odds are, you'll probably die in this line of work before you get a chance to retire," Spike added brightly.

Giles scowled. Gods, how he would like to start their hunt with the current vampire in their presence.

* * *

"I still can't believe you've been doing this since you were only fifteen. When I was fifteen I was busy either cramming for OWLs or pranking the Ravenclaw dormitory," Tonks laughed – and as she did so, her hand lightly touched Xander's arm – something that he was very aware of.

"Did I hear right?" Sirius called from the front where he was walking with Willow, the latter following a scrying spell on a map that was set to determine the location of evil creatures. "My second cousin is a prankster?"

"Not up to your standards, Cousin," Tonks grinned. She had heard about his legendary pranks – and even witnessed a few – while growing up, although sadly after he was sent to Azkaban her mother never discussed Sirius again. "But a girl like me, who's a Metamorphmagus, has to take advantage of such of thing – especially when it came to sneaking into other dorms," she sniggered.

"Thank Merlin such a trait didn't extend to Sirius," Remus shook his head with a small smile. "I can't imagine how much more trouble he would have gotten us into at school."

"Did you four get in trouble a lot?" Harry inquired with a thoughtful expression.

Remus and Sirius shared a knowing look and began laughing. "A bit," Sirius admitted with a grin. "It was mostly your dad and me leading the chaos – although Moony was an excellent strategist who ensured our ability to rarely get caught."

"That explains a lot," Hermione snorted. Everyone gave her a quizzical look. "What? It makes a lot of sense knowing why trouble follows Harry around like the plague if it's in his genes." Most of the others laughed while a few of the wizards looked confused.

"Genes?" Sirius tugged on his denim jeans. "What's in his jeans?"

"Nothing sweetie. More Muggle science talk." Willow patted his arm and smiled. Then her map began glowing. "Ooh! Couple hundred feet up ahead!"

"Wands out!" Sirius called out with an anticipatory grin.

* * *

"Kennedy! You alright?" Molly called as she pulled up the potential who had tripped and landed on the ground.

"Yeah," Kennedy snarled. "i_Fuego!_ /i" she cast and the vampire in front of her immolated immediately.

"Kennedy, this lesson is to get you to rely on your physical attributes instead of your wand," Giles chided gently. "After seeing you mishandle several of your interactions with the vampires in this next, I strongly suggest that you train more in hand-to-hand after tonight." Giles was a bit taken aback that her watcher, who he had only met several times, would be so negligent in his training techniques. 'i_Although, I suppose that is exactly what Wesley said about my work with Buffy_/i,' Giles mused silently.

"Yeah, well my way kills the bloody things, so what does it matter?" Kennedy asked as she turned her head so Giles wouldn't see her roll her eyes.

* * *

"Willow! You just had to lead us here, didn't you?" Anya yelled as she beat the approaching blue-scaled and feathered demon with the crowbar that she had brought. Previously that item used to hide underneath the cash register at the Magic Box but Anya had reclaimed it after Willow had so thoughtlessly destroyed her shop. Since she didn't own a wand, she thought it was a handy alternative.

"Well, I just saw there was a lot of energy going on map right here. How was I supposed to know it was a demon gathering?" Willow screeched nervously as she mystically batted a demon against the wall.

"They're Raminan demons!" Dawn shouted as she, Hermione, Harry, and Ron backed up against each other in a circular formation.

"Like the noodles?" Xander joked as he smashed a fist into the surprisingly soft belly of a demon who had grabbed Tonks by the throat. The witch was dropped immediately to the floor and cast a spell at the demon's stomach that created a very bloody effect and caused the seven foot creature to drop lifelessly to the cement floor of the abandoned warehouse near the docks.

"No! Not Ramen, i_Raminan_/i!" Dawn answered in an exasperated voice as she cast a i_Stupefy_/i spell that narrowly missed a demon. "And they said since we trampled into their bachelor party for their clan leader then they get to use our skulls as party favors!"

An attacking demon sent Anya tumbling to the ground with a loud crack as its spindly fingers slapped her across the face. Remus, in battle with another demon nearby, saw this and felt his beast rise. "We'll give them some party favors," he growled as a red blast of energy jettisoned from his wand and struck the demon in the center of its elongated forehand that forced it to land with a heavy thud.

* * *

"Wow! That was fun!" Andrew said in an excited voice as he attempted to twirl his stake between his fingers, resulting with the piece of wood tumbling into the thick grass of the graveyard.

"I can't believe I got that vamp! Did you see that? He totally had this 'oh shit!' look on his face when I staked him!" Vi exclaimed with a loud giggle.

"Totally wicked," Rona agreed.

Luna frowned to herself. She wondered if something was wrong with her. While she certainly participated in the fighting – although she was only able to kill one by using a body-binding spell and staking it – she didn't feel the amount of enthusiasm that the other girls were professing. Even Kennedy, who tended to act aloof, seemed thrilled by her kills.

Her eyes rove over the now-tranquil grounds of the cemetery and Luna felt a bit of homesickness. There was a lovely cemetery near her home where her mother's gravesite was. Often Luna enjoyed strolling there and talking out loud, curious if her mum was listening. It was a peaceful place and Luna rather enjoyed it.

Curiously, she began to feel the same way about this cemetery – which was odd since they had just fought a nest of ten vampires in a nearby crypt. Glancing over her shoulder she saw that everyone was still joking and discussing their battle. Knowing that it would be silly to bother them – although Luna knew that was only a surface reason, yet she didn't understand where the need to leave was coming from – she began to venture father into the cemetery.

* * *

"Right then. Wasn't that fun?" Sirius called cheerfully.

Remus rolled his eyes at Sirius' statement and began treating the cut on Anya's cheek. It made him nervous how her wide eyes followed his every move. Gently he ran a finger over the healed wound. "Better?" he asked.

Anya shivered slightly at the touch. His he-man heroics taking out a bunch of the demons after she had been attacked had turned her on. A lot. A part of her wondered what he would do if she just began stripping right here, right now. Too bad Xander was nearby. "Yes," she answered as she took a moment to examine the specs of gold that she realized his eyes had.

"Fun? Sirius we almost died!" Hermione exclaimed in an exasperated voice. "There were eight of them and only ten of us!"

"You're right – we almost did. Which is half the fun!" Sirius ruffled Harry's hair, making it even untidier than before. "Great job, Harry, by the way. When that Raminan demon started retching slugs I thought I was going to pass out with laughter. Way to take him off guard so I could get the final spell in."

Harry beamed at the praise from his godfather, but he still shrugged like he wasn't used to being admired. "'Twas nothing, Sirius. Ron showed me the hex a couple months back."

"Really? Excellent work, Ron," Sirius smiled.

Ron grinned at the notice and subtly threw his shoulders back like a preening peacock.

Off to the side, Tonks was lecturing Xander for getting himself hurt as she performed some healing spells. "Xander, I appreciate you stepping in, but I completely had that one demon," she stated somewhat irritably.

"Tonks, I may not have a wand, but I know what I'm doing. And considering that that 'one demon' was about to thrust a ceremonial knife into your body, I think maybe you didn't completely have him," Xander hissed as she performed the healing spell over his side where the knife had dug in. Damn, an annoying combination of sharp pain and incredible itchiness from the spell began to irritate him as his skin began healing exponentially.

"Okay, true. But still! What if the demon had stabbed you farther up? That wanker was dangerously close to vital organs," she grumbled. Tonks was angry at herself for her lack of 'CONSTANT VIGILANCE!' and almost getting killed, and she was feeling an odd combination of anger and fear at seeing Xander bleeding so profusely – all because he had pushed her to the side. She found his bravery remarkable – especially because he fought dark creatures even though he lacked super strength like Buffy or magic like her.

Xander found himself smiling, regardless of the pain, as he listened to Tonks grumble at him. She, he realized, was worried about him.

"What are you smiling for?" she snapped once she looked up, her brows furrowed with worry as she finished up the healing spell. "You just almost died!"

"Nothing," he answered. Alright, so maybe his attempt at taking Tonks out on a date didn't happen as he would have liked but he was enjoying this substitution.

* * *

"Luna Lovegood," whispered a soft feminine voice. Glancing around, Luna realized that she had delved farther into the wooded cemetery than she had been meant to. She often had a problem keeping track of time and other earthly things.

"Yes?" she asked warily as her wide eyes took in her surroundings. She wondered if she should call for Buffy.

"Do not fear, dearest daughter." An elderly woman wearing silver robes stepped out behind a large monument. Her face was heavily wrinkled but her blue eyes were bright with life as she looked Luna up and down slowly. The light January breeze made her long, white, and wavy hair float gently around her face, causing her to push it behind her ears.

"Who are you?" Strangely enough, even though Luna was in a cemetery on i_La Boca del Inferno_/i speaking to a strange woman who appeared out of thin air, Luna was not worried.

The woman smiled and Luna felt something pulse within her. It was an intangible feeling, one she couldn't quite describe, but something about it reminded her of 'home' – although she wasn't even quite sure what that meant.

"My name has been lost for many years now, but just know that I am a Guardian; there are only two more of my kind." Her voice had a musical quality to it and it rolled through the air like a gentle ocean wave. Listening to her, Luna felt as if she were at the beach, lightly dipping her toes into a something that was infinitely larger than she realized.

"What is a Guardian?" Luna asked politely. "I am afraid that I am not familiar with that term."

The woman frowned and nodded. "That is a pity, indeed. Too long I stayed away – too long we have all stayed away."

"But you have returned?" Luna found the older woman puzzling, even more so when she walked forward and lightly fingered Luna's equally long hair with a combination of curiosity and tenderness.

"Yes," she nodded. "It is important that you learn about your heritage. The time has come for us to enter into this fight. You must lead Buffy to it; the weapon that will change everything if all that is foretold comes to pass."

Luna frowned as her brain kicked into overdrive as she examined the woman's words. "Why me?" she asked.

"Sweet, dearest child," the woman smiled as she ran a hand gently down Luna's cheek. "Haven't you ever wondered why you know of such things that others profess don't exist? They do often exist – it is just that you are more conscious of our world. The Slayers are not as aware as they ought to be – Buffy will need you."

Her eyes lowered as a trickle of pride ran through Luna – she had never been needed before. Certainly not in such an important way.

A green flash lit up the area. "What was that?" Luna asked the old woman in alarm. The woman fell forward and Luna struggled to catch her. "Ma'am? Are you alright?" Then Luna realized that the woman's expression was frozen; her eyes lifeless.

A scream erupted from her throat as Bringers flew towards her.

"_iStupefy! Stupefy! Stupefy! /i" _called out a new voice as each Bringer fell to the ground. Surprised, Luna looked at Kennedy thankfully. "I found her! She's over here!" she yelled back. Immediately Luna heard the others running in their direction.

"You alright?" the older witch asked her with a concerned look.

"Y-yeah," Luna said shakily. She was in a state of shock at the woman's sudden death – and beyond bewildered at the woman's words.

"Here," Kennedy handed her a Dirigible plum earring. "Must have fallen out when you were running."

"Oh! Thank you. It wouldn't do to have just one earring – I think that creates the opposite effect and makes the wearer appear ugly as a troll," Luna said gratefully as she strung the earring through her ear. She saw Kennedy roll her eyes, but that was fine. Most people didn't believe in the wonder of the Dirigible plum but that was their loss.

"Luna! Why did you run off? What were you thinking? Kennedy are those eyeless guys dead? Who's the lady? Is she alive?" Buffy relentlessly began questioning as she made it to the scene with alert eyes.

"Woman's dead, probably got killed by the Bringers. Three Bringers, still alive. Found Luna right when they were ambushing her," Kennedy answered quickly in an authoritative voice.

Buffy let out a sigh of relief, as did Giles, Andrew, and the other Potentials. Spike just eyed the Bringers with interest, clearing thinking thoughts that were not suitable for kids.

"Great job, Kennedy," Buffy congratulated her. "Guess all this hocus pocus stuff ain't half bad." She turned to Luna with a stern face. "Luna! What were you thinking when you wandered away? You know what happened to Annabelle! You think I want that to happen to you, too?"

Luna frowned. "I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry?" Buffy repeated incredulously. "You could have gotten killed! Why did you leave us?"

Luna squeezed her eyes shut and tried to concentrate. "There must be some wrackspurts in the air," she muttered as her fingers reflexively moved to massage her temples.

"Huh?"

"Oh, Luna told me about them. They've invisible and they float through people's ears and it makes your mind go all fuzzy," Andrew answered in his most helpful voice.

"Luna!" Buffy was increasingly becoming irritated. "No more fake animal things and no excuses. I don't get it – you're normally so sensible. Why did you leave?"

Luna had been exploring her Ravenclaw mind that was packed with numerous shelves of neatly organizaed knowledge while Buffy spoke, seeking what should be there. Blinking open her eyes, she felt a bit of fear enter her.

"I don't remember."

* * *

"You seem to be in good spirits," the First said with a smile.

"We finally saw the entire team in action."

"And?"

"Their Muggle ways are so primitive I cannot even understand why you view them as a threat," Lucius snorted as he spoke from his bed.

"Do not question my views, Lucius. The seer warned of them, especially the witch."

"But with her throat slit, the seer is no longer able to tell anyone, is she?" Lucius reminded his master; his tone highlighted with a sense of smugness.

"True. You have done well for me. And tonight you took out another of the Slayer's Guardians."

"Yes, just before she was going to tell the witch about the weapon you warned me about. Also, I wiped the little girl's memory."

The apparition of Buffy Summers smiled, and it was not a nice smile. "Oh yes, you did very good, my dear. This may even make up for your earlier folly."

The First disappeared in a wink of light and Lucius was alone again. He stretched out on the small bed as he recollected the events of the evening. Yes, he had done very well indeed.

* * *

A/N:

If anyone has any suggestions for a good favor the losing team should do for the winners, hit me up :) Kinda not feeling any inspiration on that one…

Thanks for reading! Please review 'o' Dearest Readers!


	49. I Gotta Feeling

**Chapter 49: Gonna Be a Good, Good Night!**

A/N:

Reminder, the Scoobs like to shorten 'Sirius' to 'Sir' (pronounced 'sear') on occasion.

a href=" ." Skyefather /a's review = total inspiration for this chapter when I was totally stuck. Major props to him. See, THIS is why I love reviews :)

* * *

The adults of the house sat around the dining room table with grim faces. After allowing everyone to sleep in after a late night of slayage, Buffy brought everyone together the next afternoon to discuss the troubling attack by the Bringers on Luna and the old woman, along with Luna's sudden memory loss. Sirius, Remus, and Tonks had all examined Luna earlier today but none of them could determine how to retrieve her memory. Last night they had even tried to figure out some way to get information out of the Bringers but somehow they had managed to get loose and ended up finding the bad end of pointy weapons thanks to Kennedy and Buffy.

Now the nine of them, Giles, Willow, Xander, Anya, Spike, Sirius, Remus, Tonks, and Buffy, were at a loss of what to do or what last night's events meant.

"It's clear that we are not going to get to the bottom of this and I'm bored. Can I go now?" Anya asked in a precise voice.

"No one is asking you to stay, Anya," reminded Buffy in an irritated voice. "But we need to figure this out."

"Buffy, she may have a point," Remus countered gently. "We have been going over this for hours and it's nearly dinner time. We all might benefit from a break at this point."

Buffy fought not to do something childish, like stick out her tongue, when Remus helped out Anya in the conversation. Anya was slowly but surely wrapping that man around her fingers, just like she had done with Xander. Not that Buffy didn't want Anya to be happy – Anya was her friend, after all – but it was a little bit annoying.

"Fine," she sighed and the group made a quick exodus out of the room. Soon Buffy was all alone, trying to figure out how to best protect everyone.

Like always.

* * *

Willow and Sirius found the teenagers of the house lounging in one of the living rooms, engaged in rapt discussion of last night's events. Harry and Ron were lucky incredibly uncomfortable sandwiched on a couch between Chloe and Molly, the two potentials who were only a year older than the boys. Luna was curled up in a loveseat next to Dawn with a book on her lap as she listened to Hermione pepper both of them with questions about staking a vampire – although Willow noted that Hermione's gaze would harden when she glanced towards her friends on the couch. Vi, Rona, and Kennedy rounded out the group as they practiced some playful hand-to-hand moves at the other end of the room.

"Sirius!" Harry and Ron exclaimed when they saw him.

"Hey guys." Sirius couldn't help but grin at the open admiration Chloe and Molly were lavishing on the boys. Both looked nervous as hell – such a difference from James and him growing up.

"Sirius, isn't it time for our next DADA lesson?" Harry asked as he glanced nervously at the girl to his left, Molly, who was leaning closely into him.

Putting a serious expression on his face, he pretended to contemplate the question. "I'm not sure Harry. Aren't you tired after last night?" Sirius conjured a large chair for him and Willow to squeeze into and sat down, with her on his lap. "I mean, after all, you did do an excellent job taking on those demons. In fact, it's a shame you girls had to miss it. Both Harry and Ron were on fire last night." Sirius smiled as he put in a shameless plug for his godson and his friend. He thought it was important that Harry live like a normal teenager – which included having girlfriends.

Immediately the Molly and Chloe began swarming over the two boys and Willow gave him a frown. "You know those poor boys are scared to death of talking to girls, yeah?" she whispered into his ear. "Be nice," she chided.

Sirius, who was also realizing that Kennedy was subtly watching them, gave Willow a slow kiss that turned his insides to liquid fire. "Who says they need to talk to girls? There's plenty of other things people can do without talking," he whispered with a lopsided smile.

Willow giggled and rolled her eyes. "You're bad."

"Perhaps I need to be punished?" he whispered hopefully into her ear.

"If you guys are going to make googly eyes at each other, can't you go upstairs? And don't forget a silencing spell," Dawn loudly interrupted with mischievous eyes.

The teenagers burst into laughter, some of it nervous laughter, at her statement while Willow hid her blushing face into the crook of Sirius' neck.

"Jealous, Dawn? Maybe you should have asked Buffy to bring you home a vampire last night that you could make out with," Sirius teased.

Dawn's mouth gaped open. "SIRIUS! I cannot _believe _that you are bringing that up!" she screeched.

Tonks and Xander, walking in at that moment, stared at Dawn like she was a circus exhibit.

"You mean you make out with vampires?" Ron asked in an astonished voice. "Wicked," he said appreciatively – causing both Hermione and Chloe to scowl at him.

"Is that some sort of Summers thing?" Rona asked. "Dating vamps?"

"No!" Dawn retorted in an irritated tone. "I didn't know he was a vampire at the time. Buffy is the vamp dater, not me."

"Yeah, what's up with that? The whole Buffy-Spike thing. Are they still having the hot, crazy sex?" Kennedy asked curiously.

"Spike and Buffy have sex?" Tonks whispered to Xander in a surprised voice. She had heard of vampire-human relationships but she never thought Buffy would be into that.

"Not anymore," Xander answered in a low voice. To Kennedy he said in a louder voice, "They aren't having sex anymore, she over that. Now they are just friends or whatever. Besides, that's not any of your business."

"Ew. What would she see in a vampire?" Chloe asked squeamishly. Winking at Ron, she giggled. "I know I like my men hot-blooded." Ron gulped audibly and Hermione's eyes threw daggers at the girl.

"Maybe it's his chiseled features," Luna suggested dreamily. "He has an interesting bone structure."

Nearly everyone in the room stared at Luna in surprise. "You mean you _like_ Spike like that? Even though he's a vampire?" Harry sputtered.

Smiling to herself as she wondered what Ron's reaction would be, she answered for Luna. "Oh come off it," she scoffed. "It's obvious that even though Spike is undead he is extremely attractive. Why, just the other day I saw him working out without a shirt and his stomach was positively drool-worthy."

"You saw him naked?" Ron shouted with narrowed eyes and a face that was quickly reddening in anger.

"Of course not, Ron," Hermione responded breezily. "Honestly."

Vi, who had a great dislike of arguing and shouting, interrupted the moment. "I've got a question."

"Please don't let it be about Spike's body," Xander muttered with rolled eyes. He glanced at Tonks. "I would pay good money to see Spike transformed into an old fuddy-duddy so he would stop driving the women of this house insane." Tonks just smiled at the humorous suggestion.

"We still haven't discussed what favor Team Wizard is going to give Team Slayer since we won last night."

Sirius held up a hand. "Vi, dear, I think the outcome of the contest is not so cut and dried. After all, we killed eight ferocious demons."

"Yeah, well we killed ten vampires and then three Bringers!" countered Rona. "Let me guess, they don't teach math at Wizarding school," she cracked as Team Slayer – and some members of Team Wizard – began laughing.

"You know, I ought to hex you for such a thing," Sirius said in a threatening voice, but his eyes showed he had no intention of follow through.

"Please," Rona scoffed. "Like Willow would let you. She's nice to us."

"That's true, no hexing Sirius," Willow instructed him. She loved that he pouted before nodding his head in defeat. He was honestly too adorable sometimes.

"Sirius is right, you know," Hermione said in a proper voice. "Demons are much harder to defeat than vampires and thus have to at least count for two vampires each. Meaning that technically we slayed the equivalent of sixteen vampires, thus beating your total."

"Hey! That's so totally not fair!" Chloe countered with a glare.

"There's only one way to settle this," Dawn said. "GILES! BUFFY! REMUS! ANYA! ANDREW! SPIKE! GET IN HERE!" she shouted at the top of her lungs.

"Ouch, Dawnie. Did you really need to scream?" Xander asked as they all winced and rubbed their ears.

She shrugged. "I'm a little sister. Screaming is what we do best."

Ron, thinking of living with Ginny, muttered "Ain't i_that/i _the truth."

Those called rushed into the room with wide eyes. "What? Something evil? What happened?" Buffy asked in a rush. Giles noticeably panted while Remus and Anya were looking quite flushed.

Dawn quickly explained the situation while each side argued their case. "So, Giles, who won? You're Knowledge Man."

He sighed as he cleaned his glasses, knowing that it was a bad idea to piss off wizards and witches. "As outlined by the rules of which team can 'bag the most baddies', Team Slayer is the clear winner."

Girlish shrieks – including Andrew's – sounded through the room.

"Excellent," Buffy rubbed her hands together in a Monty Burns-ish fashion. "Now, let's talk about those favors, Team Wizard."

An hour later it was settled. Sirius would replicate the latest line of Jimmy Choo shoes for Buffy from her old high heels and transfigure a space in her closet to specially display the prized creations, Andrew got the wizards to replicate a blue lightsaber for him (that was, at Giles' strong suggestion, nonfunctioning and the blade would pass through objects without cutting them), apathetic Spike finally just said he would be happy if Hermione and Luna would bloody stop asking him constant questions, and while Buffy jokingly suggested that they make it so Giles' glasses are permanently clean, he only asked for magical earplugs that would snuff out any outside noise so those 'blasted teenagers' wouldn't bother him anymore.

The potentials, meanwhile, banded together to demand that Team Wizard take Team Slayer out to The Bronze on Friday night and dance with any of them upon request. The request was easily accepted with a sigh of relief at the simplicity of it, although Harry and Ron looked considerably nervous.

* * *

"'Scuse me, Buffy?"

Buffy looked to see Tonks standing in her bedroom doorway. "Hey Tonks, what's the what?" She stepped away from admiring her new Jimmy Choos and gave the witch her full attention.

"I was just wondering, do you got a minute?" Oddly enough, Tonks looked nervous – which was not the Tonks that Buffy had become accustomed too in her almost three week stay.

"'Course." Buffy sat down on her bed and gestured for Tonks to join.

"I was just wondering," she began to wring her hands, "if you could help me with something. See, back home I'm more of a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl and if I do dress up it involves my dress robes. I'm not sure what to wear to The Bronze tonight but I wanted to dress up. Do you have any suggestions?"

Buffy bit her lip to keep from smiling like a crazy person. "Any particular reason why you want to dress up? Perhaps a brunette man type reason?" she teased lightly.

A blush colored her face immediately. "Oi, stop that. I just want to look i_nice/i_." Tonks winced. "Gods, my mother would have a heart attack if she knew I wanted to dress like a _girl._"

Clapping her hands gleefully, Buffy smiled widely. "Oh, this is great! I think you and Xander would be cute together."

"Yeah?" Tonks asked with clear interest.

"Definitely," Buffy nodded. "You guys are both funny, like to kill evil things, and are low-key cool people. Plus, Xander so could use a nice girl."

"Er, I take it you didn't like him with Anya?"

Buffy paused as she considered the question. "Listen, I love Anya – took me a while, but I do – but she's somewhat crazy. Xander's my best friend, like my brother, and I want to see him happy. I think he needs a nice, normal girl like you."

"You think I'm normal?" Tonks snorted. "You do realize I can change my appearance at will and I'm a witch."

Buffy laughed as she thought about Xander's past love interests. "Surprisingly, yes. Now, time to fix up your ensemble tonight," she said with a mischievous grin. "Willow! I need you!"

* * *

"Sirius," Harry groaned. "Do we i_have_/i to go tonight?" He, Sirius, Ron, and Remus were at the mall – the same place where Buffy and Dawn had abducted Sirius to months ago – to find some proper going out apparel for the boys since their school uniforms, robes, and Muggle t-shirts would not work at all – according to a very snooty Dawn.

Sirius tossed another button-up green dress shirt at the boy. "We made a bet and we've got to stick to it."

"Actually, you made the bet," Harry reminded him wryly.

"Hmm, so I did. But really, you think you'd be looking forward to going out with some beautiful ladies!"

"You do remember me telling you about the horror of the Yule Ball, right?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, those girls were bloody awful," Ron moaned.

"Ah, you mean your dates getting mad at you and your fight with Hermione?" Remus asked as he thumbed through a rack.

Ron frowned. "I still don't get why Hermione got so mad. Just goes to prove that girls are crazy."

Harry sighed. He knew why Hermione had gotten so upset but after recently renewing his friendship with Ron (the latter had been angry with him over Harry getting picked to be a Triwizard Cup Champion) he was in no mood to correct Ron's idea.

Sirius and Remus shared a knowing look. "Yes, that is odd that Hermione got mad at you," Remus conceded. "Do you, er, like her in any way, Ron?"

His face scrunched in confusion. "'Course I like her! She's my friend after all."

Harry hid his face behind a rack of clothing so Ron wouldn't see his smirk.

"Er, right, Ron. But have you ever thought of Hermione as a girl you would want to date?" Sirius ventured.

Ron's eyes widened in a comical fashion. "Wha-what? Hermione?" His voice was slightly higher in pitch when saying her name.

Sirius shot Remus a grin and wondered if Hermione and Ron would be one of those oblivious couples, like how Lily took years to realize she loved James. "Yeah, Hermione. Ever think about that?" he asked with a slight shrug.

"No," Ron said in a stubborn voice. "It's i_Hermione/i._ We're friends. We can't date. Besides, she's into Viktor Krum," he added in a sullen voice.

Sirius shrugged. "Well, what about you, Harry? Do you like Hermione?" Sirius already knew that Harry only thought of her as a friend but he couldn't help but push Ron a bit more.

"What? No, now way," Harry said quickly as Ron gave him a dark look. Hearing Harry's comments, however, the boy visibly calmed. "She's just a friend, really that's it."

Sirius smirked at Ron's reaction. "Any ladies interest you, then? Molly sure seems to like you."

"Er, she's alright I 'spose," he answered.

"She talks a i_lot_/i," Ron added with a laugh. "I feel bad for you Harry."

"Oh yeah? Well, Chloe is always all over you," Harry fired back with a grin.

Ron shrugged sheepishly. "That isn't so bad."

"Well boys, you better learn to enjoy attention from the ladies," Sirius said with a laugh. "Because Merlin knows they're going to own you tonight."

* * *

It was nightfall and the walls of The Bronze were practically vibrating with the loud music of an indie rock band. Teenagers, young adults, and even some older adults packed the dance floor and the bar – something about living on the Hellmouth must really drive people to drink. It was hard to find tables but after some intentional fierce looks and knuckle cracking, Spike was able to find a large enough space on the side of the dance floor to seat all nineteen of them – everyone but Giles who had opted to enjoy a quiet night in the house with his Sherlock Holmes novels.

"Okay girls, remember – never go off on your own and if you see eyeless dudes in robes, run. Other than that, have fun!" Buffy said brightly.

Immediately Chloe and Molly dragged Ron and Harry off to the dance floor. Seeing Carlos and Kit near the bar, Dawn went to hang out with her friends, since between magic lessons and a house full of people she never got to see them anymore. Spike immediately headed to the bar in order to get 'properly monged out' since living with all those teenage girls was causing his brain to begin leaking out of his ears. Hermione sat with Luna, Kennedy, Vi, and Rona at a table, although the former's eyes kept glancing towards the dance floor. At the last table sat Willow, Sirius, Xander, Tonks, Anya, Remus, Buffy, and Andrew – who looked entirely too pleased to be sitting with the Scoobies.

"Aw, look at them," Willow pointed at the dance floor. "That's so cute that Harry and Ron have little girlfriends."

"Ah, young love," Andrew mused theatrically. "And how perfect that one with a great destiny like Harry should join Molly, who potentially has a great destiny."

"Yes, the hormonally crazed teenagers seem to be getting lucky tonight," Anya commented, silently wondering why i_she_/i wasn't getting lucky. Earlier today she and Remus had almost kissed until Dawn's loud mouth annoyingly interrupted them. Since then, Remus would barely look at her, even though she was wearing a sexy halter dress, put her hair up, and wore lip gloss to make her lips look extra kissable.

"Ew, don't mention my potentials getting 'lucky'," Buffy said as she made a face. "I so don't want to go into the whole 'sex is bad, it makes guys turn evil, don't do it' speech with them."

"Point taken, Buffster, but truth be told not all men 'go evil'," Xander pointed out.

"True. Besides, women can go evil too. Can't tell you the number of girls who began scarily stalking me back in school after we-" Sirius realized that Remus was subtly shaking his head 'no' and paused his boasting. Realizing that Willow was glaring at him he hastily changed the subject. "So, Tonks, what about you? Got any boyfriends back home, carrying on the Black heartbreaker tradition?"

Tonks' eyes darted towards Xander before she answered. "Nope, can't say I do. It's difficult to find men of high-caliber, ya know?"

"Well I bet that they're beating down your door back home," Willow said with a smile. She liked Tonks, she was a nice girl, plus she desperately wanted the approval of one of the few relatives that Sirius actually liked. Not to mention, she thought that the girl was a good match for her Xander friend. "After all, you look wonderful tonight. Doesn't she, Xander, everyone?"

Xander was mildly annoyed at being put on the spot but understand that Willow was just trying to give him an opportunity. "She's right, you look beautiful tonight." And she did. Tonks' bright pink hair hung in loose waves above her shoulders, she wore a one-shouldered purple tank top that showed a good amount of creamy white skin, and a pair of worn jeans. Involuntarily, Xander felt a flash of guilt for flirting with a woman with Anya at the same table and he saw her stiffen slightly.

Tonks gave him a sweet smile. "Thanks Xander, you too Willow."

"I think I would like a drink. One of those fruity ones with cute little umbrellas. Remus, you want to join me at the bar?" Anya said suddenly.

"Sure," he said in a surprised voice. He still felt uncertain about their almost-kiss earlier today and had promised himself to stay away… but what was the harm in one little drink?

Buffy sighed heavily at their departure. "Oh my god, this is such a couple's night out," she groaned. "And here I am, single Buffy."

"Well, I'm single too, so we can be single together!" Andrew said brightly as he noticeably scooted closer to the vampire slayer.

Buffy groaned again and let her head fall to the table.

"And also, maybe we – er, you – could also dance with Spike," Andrew offered.

Pursing her lips, Buffy considered it. "Well, we are friends," she said slowly, in that way that she was trying to convince herself out loud that it would be okay.

"No, Buff. That is definitely of the bad," Xander warned.

"Right. And he's not really that good-looking anyhow," Tonks added with a secretive smile.

Buffy just sighed and took a deep sip of her Coca-Cola – no evil alcohol for this one-time cave woman!

Then band began a fast-paced song that had Tonks quickly tapping her foot to the beat. "Oi, this song is great!" She placed a hand on Xander's forearm. "Want to dance?"

Xander prayed silently to the Relationship God that Tonks wouldn't suddenly turn into a fire-breathing demon or have anything else go wrong. Especially when she looked really, really good in that outfit. "Sure."

As they moved to the beat on the dance floor, Tonks leaned in close to Xander and spoke in his ear. "How would you like to make sure that Buffy doesn't even _want_ to hook up with Spike tonight?" she asked with a mischievous grin.

"I would love it," he said immediately. "But how?"

Tonks giggled. She had learned over the last couple weeks that Xander loved to do several things: make jokes, eat, prank, and irritate vampires. Tonight she would help him accomplish the latter two actions.

* * *

"Willow? Want to dance?" Kennedy asked shyly as she approached the Scooby table.

Sirius immediately glared at the witch. "No," he answered in a clipped tone.

"Sirius," Willow reprimanded. "I can speak for myself." The jealously that Sirius harbored where Kennedy was concerned was really starting to bother Willow. Ever since their moment on Christmas Eve Willow had felt a great depth of understanding for the girl and Kennedy had begun opening up more. Since Sirius was often busy hanging out with Harry, she and Kennedy had begun hanging out – sometimes with Amy – to discuss and practice spells. Of course, their different styles of magic made it tricky, but that was the fun part! Willow missed her old coven and in no way was she going to make the 'Campus Wiccans' her new coven, so in a way she was trying to get back that feeling of witchy camaraderie. Quickly Willow was realizing that Kennedy acted bitchy around the others but when it was just her and Amy, the potential slayer was really quite nice.

"Well," Kennedy shrugged. "Since Team Slayer i_did_/i win, we get to dance with whoever we want from Team Wizard. And there's really no one else I'm interested in dancing with. Besides," she tossed Sirius a – what he presumed to be – fake smile, "it's only as friends."

"That's true, Team Slayer i_does_/i get to dance with whoever we want!" Andrew chirped in helpfully – although he shrank back at Sirius' intimidating glare.

Willow gave Sirius a peck on the cheek. "It's no big, Sir. I'll be right back."

Sirius grimaced as they walked to the dance floor. "I really can't stand that bint," he muttered.

"Sirius," Buffy said as she placed a hand on top of his. "It's no big. They're just friends. Besides," she snorted, "Will's no cougar – Kennedy's four years younger than her."

"True. But she does act much more older than her years," Andrew added thoughtfully.

"Not. Helping," Buffy said in a gritty voice as she gave him a look that was her 'Slayer Special.'

"Ah, I'm going to get another drink. Bye!" he said quickly as he dashed off to the bar.

"It's not that I don't trust Willow – it's just that I don't trust Kennedy," Sirius stated in a dark tone. "I didn't survive twelve years in Azkaban just to see some spoiled brat of a witch try to steal the one person who has changed my life."

"Aw. That's really cute," Buffy sighed. She wished that someone felt about her like that – someone who wasn't the walking undead. Speaking of, where was he?

* * *

"Andrew! There you are Xander said in a jovial tone as he clapped the geek on the back.

"Hey Xander, Tonks!" Andrew said in an excited voice. He missed Jonathon a lot lately, especially when he always felt excluded in Scooby things. It was nice to have someone happy to see him.

"Listen Andrew, we need your help," Tonks said seriously.

Senses alert, Andrew nodded immediately. "What? Anything," he swore.

The two exchanged wide smiles.

"Great. We just need you to ask Spike if he'll accompany you to the men's bathroom since Buffy said no one could go anywhere alone. Okay?" Tonks asked.

Andrew frowned. "Are you going to hurt Spike?" he asked suspiciously. After all, he knew Alexander Not-Sure-What-His-Middle-Name-Was Harris did not like Spike.

"No! Of course not! We're just going to play a little prank. You know," Tonks shrugged and winked, "like the kind Sirius and Remus do."

"Oh! Alright then," Andrew agreed.

* * *

"So Hermione, Luna, how do you like America so far? Do they have clubs in your Wizarding land?" Vi asked over the roar of the crowd.

"America is quite interesting – I've been finding all sorts of new creatures here. However I don't think I'm the sort that enjoys clubs. It's a bit too noisy here for me," Luna surmised softly.

"Hermione?" Rona prompted.

"Oh? Yes?" Hermione hurriedly asked as she jerked her eyes away from the dance floor.

The other three girls shared amused looks. "Girl, you gotta stop staring at him all night!" Rona demanded. "If you want him, just go after him."

"What? I don't know what you are talking about," Hermione responded in a flustered way.

"Right. Just like my mama says back home in Texas, a drought usually ends with a flood," Vi said sagely as her voice took on more of her home state accent.

"What's that mean?" Hermione as he brows furrowed in confusion.

"Means you can keep putting this off – admitting you like Ron over there – but it'll erupt sooner or later."

"Well, I don't like him like that," Hermione said stubbornly. "He's pig-headed, insensitive, and absolutely annoying!"

"Oh my, you must like him quite a bit," Luna said softly.

"Luna! How in the world did you come across that idea?" Hermione griped.

"When you speak of Ron your voice is very passionate. I've noticed that. People who are just friends don't harbor such strong emotions towards each other," Luna answered as she toyed with her dirigible plum earring.

"So true," Rona agreed.

Hermione bit her lip, unsure if she could trust these girls. She liked them well enough. Vi was quite sweet, Rona was a bit sassy, and Luna – well, Luna was just Luna. "Maybe, maybe you have a point," she conceded with a defeated sigh. "But regardless, I'm not going to just seize him out there on the dance floor. Ron doesn't think of me as a i_girl_/i," she hissed angrily, remembering previous conversations.

"Well then he's so dumb that if you moved his plate five inches to the left he'd starve to death," Vi cracked, much to the other girls' delight.

"We'll get you dancing with him, no problem," Rona assured her and the other girls nodded eagerly.

Why was Hermione suddenly getting a bad feeling in her stomach?

* * *

Buffy left the tension of the table – after Willow's return and some snide comments from Sirius they were now arguing loudly – to refill her glass at the bar. Hell, she was tempted at this point to just get a margarita. Grabbing a spare seat of the bar, she did just that and sighed with pleasure at the sweet taste of strawberry tequila goodness that hit her throat.

"Seat taken?" asked deep voice to her left.

Slowly raising her head she openly appraised the owner of the voice. He had thick black McDreamy-type hair that fell into his eyes, wore a finely tailored pair of pants and dress shirt, and had the bluest eyes she had ever seen. In other words, he was yummy goodness.

"Sure," she smiled as she screamed internally, "i_Jackpot!_ /i"

"Thank you," he smiled back as he extended his hand. "My name is Luke and while in my head I've named you 'Gorgeous Blond Beauty' when I spotted you across the room, I would love to learn your real name."

Buffy felt herself blushing. It was sad that after years of messed up dating she had lost her game and was blushing at the first compliment! Old Hemery High Buffy would never do such a thing!

Obviously, she needed to step up her game.

Giving him a flirtatious smile, she shook his hand. "Nice to meet you, Luke. I'm Buffy."

"May I buy you a drink?" he asked kindly.

Realizing that in her nervousness she had practically gulped down her margarita, she nodded. "That would be great," she answered with a wide grin.

Oh yes, tonight was gonna to be a good, good night.

Lucius Malfoy laughed to himself. Muggles could be so predictable – it was almost sad. A little attention and the woman was slowly becoming his. Finally after his hard work, he was finally starting to see the results.

Then everything would fall into place and Lucius would be granted more power than he had ever dreamed of.

Oh yes, tonight was a good night.

* * *

**A/N:**

I'm not sure if it bothers people or not, how the last few chapters have really taken the focus off of Willow/Sirius and onto Xander/Tonks, Sirius/others, Buffy, Anya/Remus, etc. If it does or doesn't, please let me know because I am curious and it may reflect future emphasis on other characters. However, once the kids take off for Hogwarts things will be settling down and refocusing back on our beloved couple, fyi :)

Thanks for reading & reviewing!

*Brit slang gotten here, so no yelling if I used phrases wrong! .org/wiki/British_slang

* Felicia Day (Actress who plays Vi) is from Texas = I made Vi from Texas = here's an online guide to fun Texan sayings! .#anchor574669 & .

* Chapter title comes from that annoyingly catchy Black Eyed Peas Song "I Gotta Feeling"


	50. Kisses & Confessions

**Chapter 50: Kisses & Confessions**

Andrew shut the bathroom door behind them and gave Spike a nervous smile. "Thanks for walking me to the bathroom, Spike. Like Buffy said, it's important to stick together!"

Spike snorted and lit a cigarette. "Yeah, well last thing we need are those damn alphabet eyes kidnapping or trying to kill one of us again, poindexter."

"Wotcher!" shouted Tonks as she slammed the door open and tripped forward, being held up only by Xander. "Wha' you two up to?" she giggled as she stood unsteadily on her feet.

"Bloody hell, you do realize this is the men's room, yeah? Boy Wonder, please tell me you're not trying to hook up with the Auror girl here in a dirty club bathroom," Spike said scornfully.

"Men's room?" Xander slurred. "Oops! Thish is not where we wanna be, is i' Tonksy?" She shook her head fervently 'no', causing crazed curls of pink hair to fly all over her face

Spike's eyebrows shot up in alarm as he realized the slayer's pal and the wizard's cousin were completely plastered. With their heavy-lidded eyes, slurring, and stumbling, it looked like whatever they had been drinking must have been something good.

"Right, well get going then. Little boy," Spike jerked his thumb in Andrew's direction, "has to use the loo and I want to get back to my drink."

"Your drink?" Xander asked with a raised brow. "Please," he snorted. "Wha' is i', a Shirley Temple?"

Spike's face hardened at the insult. "No, it's Sailor Jerry Rum. Top of the line type thing."

Tonks giggled. "Uh huh. I heard since you got your soul back you haven't been very bad ass. I doubt you could even handle what we've been drinking."

"What? Could too!" Spike declared with narrowed eyes. "I'm a vampire, takes a lot to stop me."

Tonks and Xander shared a grin and began giggling again. "Yeah, right," Tonks said with a roll of her eyes as she pulled a flask out of Xander's jacket. She began to raise it to her lips when Spike yanked it away.

"Hey!" she slurred. "Tha's mine!"

"I'll show you," Spike snarled as he gulped down a large amount. His face puckered at the taste and he gagged. "Ah! What in the bleedin' hell is this slosh?"

Tonks clutched Xander's shirt and fell into him slightly. "Told ya he couldn't take it," she said between an assortment of hiccups and giggles.

Straightening his face with resolve, Spike gulped down the rest of the flask without taking his eyes off the drunken couple. "There!" he shouted in victory, even as his stomach bubbled in disgust.

Spike leaned against the bathroom stall door as a wave of nausea rolled through him. "What was in that sodding flask?" he gasped. Another stab of pain hit him in the gut and he doubled over. "Did you lot poison me?"

"Don't worry, Spike!" Tonks said in a sudden chipper – and sober – voice. "It's not poison. It's a potion, actually. Polyjuice potion."

Spike moved forward to grab Xander in order to shake him senseless for poisoning him with some potion when his chip went off. "Ahh!" he cried in alarm as one hand clutched his head and his other hand clutched his stomach.

"Spike, don't worry! It's just a little prank. The potion makes you look like someone else for a few hours. It's all in good fun," Tonks reassured.

Spike felt the shape of his body contorting, his height lessening, his face filling out – it was maddening but only lasted a couple minutes. Finally when it ended he snarled at Tonks, Xander, and Andrew and looked in the mirror.

His mouth dropped out in shock. "You bloody didn't," he gasped – although it wasn't quite his voice anymore.

Xander grinned slyly. "Just consider us even for you living rent free at my place all those times.

* * *

"Done!" Anya called out enthusiastically as she slammed her mug down. The crowd cheered for her and Anya jumped up and did a quick little celebratory dance. Remus hurriedly finished his mug of beer and slammed it down on the bar counter.

"Alright, alright, you win. I never should laughed at you when you said you could take those frat boys on in a drinking contest," Remus conceded with a grin.

"Darn straight! I may look like your average beautiful, young girl, but I have many hidden talents," she responded with a wink..

"You're pretty talented. And pretty!" interrupted a young man wearing a Sunnydale University shirt. He leaned closer to Anya and ran a finger down her bare arm. "Buy you a drink?"

Remus fought to control a growl that rested in his throat. Anya was truly a sight of beauty tonight and it seemed like every young male idiot in the club knew it. Of course, Remus had repeatedly told himself that kissing Anya would be a poor professional move, not to mention the fact that he knew from experience it was impossible to be in a relationship with a woman since he was a werewolf.

Of course… That resolve was quickly weakening.

"Oh, no thank you! I am already with someone tonight," Anya answered him with a smile.

The university fellow gave Remus a skeptical look. "Isn't he kind of old for you, baby?"

Anya swatted him fiercely on the arm. "What? You think that's old? How dare you be so ageist! Let me guess, if you knew I was a thousand years you probably wouldn't like me either?"

The guy look startled at Anya's indignant shouting. "Um, I think my friend is calling me. Later," he said in a rush as he high tailed it out of there.

"Honestly, people can be so rude," Anya complained.

Remus smirked. "A bit touchy about your age?"

"Of course not," she pursed her lips.

Remus leaned in closer so she would hear him over the roar of the music. "Well if it helps, you are the most attractive thousand year old woman I've ever met."

"A high compliment, considering I am the only woman of a thousand years that you've met," she said with a roll of her eyes.

Remus blushed. He never was the smoothest when it came to women. "True enough. But you also happen to be the most attractive woman that I know."

She smiled at him and grabbed his hand. "Good answer. Now let's dance!"

"Dance?" he asked with trepidation.

Anya didn't reply, instead just yanking him onto the dance floor.

* * *

Harry and Ron walked back to the table where the other teenagers had been sitting, utterly exhausted from dancing, and plopped down in the bar stools. Ron eyed the remaining members of the table – Luna who was staring off into space and bobbing her head to the music, and Vi and Rona who were laughing to themselves.

"Where'd Hermione go?" Ron asked curiously.

"Oh, some handsome friend of Dawn's asked her to dance," Luna replied as she turned her large blue eyes to Ron and Harry.

"What? Who?" Ron blurted out – missing the sight of Rona and Vi share eye rolls.

"Carlos. He's a junior, like Dawn," Vi replied as she struggled to keep a straight face.

"So he's older than Hermione? That's not good. She should steer clear of older guys. You know what they say," Ron stated in annoyance.

"No, what do they say?" Luna asked innocently.

"Y-you know!" Ron sputtered. "They're all experienced and stuff!" He felt his face reddening at the thought of Hermione dancing with this fellow.

"Well, if you don't think she should dance with him, you should probably ask her," Vi suggested mildly.

"Well, I can't do that!" Ron exclaimed.

"Why not?" Luna asked with piercing eyes.

"Because, because she's my friend," Ron answered in an unsure voice.

"Ron! There you are!" Chloe called out jovially as she and Molly bounded up to the table. "Ready to dance more?"

"Oh, er, sure. Let's go," Ron agreed, his face a mixture of emotion.

Harry braced himself for Molly abducting him again. It wasn't that he didn't like the girl… She was very nice. And she seemed like a good person and all. But she talked non-stop, clung to him at every available moment, didn't like or understand Quidditch, and had this annoying tendency to giggle at everything he said.

"Hey Harry," Molly purred as she leaned close to her ear. "Ready for another bout of dancing?"

"Um." Harry looked pleadingly around and wished that Sirius and Willow hadn't been bickering or he would have sat with them. "Um, actually I just promised Luna a dance!" he said in a rush. Luna was nice. She didn't talk a lot and sure she was kind of odd but she was from Hogwarts - they had to stick together!

"What?" Molly asked in surprised as she glanced at a wide-eyed Luna.

"Oh, why yes," Luna said slowly as she registered Harry's comment. She stepped off her stool and held out her hand. "Come on Harry. Let's hurry before this good song ends."

He clutched her hand like a life preserver. "See you guys later!" he called to the potential slayers.

Once they were out of earshot and on the dance floor, he sighed in relief. "Thank you, Luna. I just couldn't dance with her anymore – she's driving me crazy."

Luna nodded. "Well that makes a great deal of sense. After all, Molly is a Pisces and you're a Leo," she said, as if that explained everything.

"Er, yeah," Harry nodded, even though that didn't make a lick of sense to him.

The music slowed and Harry felt incredibly nervous at the prospect of slow dancing. "If you would like, you could escape to go find Ron and sit somewhere away from Molly. I'll cover for you; you don't have to dance with me," Luna offered kindly.

"Oh, no," Harry shook his head. Now he felt a bit awful if she thought he was using her. "I'd like to dance, really."

"Oh lovely. I never get to dance," Luna smiled. She wrapped her hands loosely around his neck and he placed his hands self-consciously on his waist. "So are you enjoying your time here?"

Harry grinned. "Besides Mad Molly, absolutely. I'm so happy that Willow was able to work it out with Dumbledore to bring us here. Hanging out with Sirius and Remus has been great."

"That's nice. I heard that you had never met Sirius before the end of last year? Frankly, I was surprised to find out the conspiracy surrounding his arrest."

"Yeah." He felt something catch in his throat at remembering that after years of suffering under the Dursleys he finally had a dad, of sorts. "It's been real nice getting to know him."

"Yes, Sirius is interesting," Luna giggled. "He plays the most lovely pranks. Have you seen the photograph of Buffy with her charmed lime green Mohawk?"

"No. He pranked the slayer?" Harry asked in astonishment.

"Oh yes. It was sometime before I arrived but quite well thought of – well, by everyone except Buffy," she grinned.

"So how do you like this potential slayer business?" Harry ventured. Molly had prattled on about it and how great it was but he realized he didn't even know what his schoolmate thought of it.

Luna shrugged slightly. "It's a bit odd. I'm not a particularly violent person so I can't quite see myself becoming a slayer. But I do enjoy all the books about demons and other creatures!" she said with sparkling eyes. In fact, do you remember our conversation at the Three Broomsticks about the Menslengua demons?"

Harry squinted as he racked his memory. "Those demons that read minds?" he asked hesitantly.

"Yes! Those ones. It turns out that Buffy battled one of them and actually was infected for a while until they found the cure!" she said in an excited voice.

"Wow," was all Harry could say. Perhaps Luna wasn't so loony after all, if the things she believed in were real – except they were things just know to the slayer and watcher people.

"Actually," she mused, "I think that if I don't become a Chosen One I'd like to be a watcher. It would be lovely fun to be able to do research on dark creatures for a living in order to help others."

"Well, you would probably be perfect for that," Harry agreed with a smile. He couldn't see Luna enjoying anything more. "Besides, trust me, being labeled a 'Chosen One' isn't much fun," he said sourly.

Luna examined him for a minute before speaking. "Well, Buffy always tells us that just because Destiny has a plan for you doesn't mean you need to bow down to it. She's quite adamant that we choose our own destinies through our choices. Being the Chosen One doesn't mean you need to bow to the whims of others, you know," Luna nodded. "I'm confident that you'll carve your own path, Harry Potter, when the time comes."

Harry blinked at the conversation's sudden turn in seriousness. "Thanks, Luna," he said as he processed her words. Maybe she had a point.

The song ended and Luna dropped her arms from his neck. "Thank you for the dance, Harry. It was nice."

"You're welcome, Luna. Er, if you want we could dance some more," he shrugged.

A smile lit up her face. "I'd like that."

* * *

"So is the ginger the dude you're crushing on?" Carlos inquired as he jerked his head in Ron's direction.

Hermione scowled as she saw Ron with that Chloe twit again. "Yes."

Carlos winked at her. "Well then we better dance over there, shouldn't we?" He began twirling her in circles as they made their way closer, with the quick movements causing Hermione to become dizzy with laughter.

"Thank you," she said as he pulled her close. "I know this must be rather strange for you, what with Dawn asking you to help make Ron jealous and making him stop being an idiot," she said self-consciously – after all, she had just met the boy.

"Actually, in case you didn't hear, technically Dawn ordered me," Carlos laughed. "No, but really, it's no problem. Dawn's my girl and if you're her friend then you're my girl too. Besides, how else could I use my devilish good looks for the betterment of mankind?" he asked airily with a wide smile.

Hermione laughed out loud and silently agreed with him. Carlos was medium-height, had lovely caramel skin, and dark hair that slightly reminded her of the pictures of the vampire Angel that Dawn had shown her.

Suddenly Carlos grasped her waist and pulled her close to his body. "Oh!" she gasped – and wasn't exactly unhappy with the feeling.

"Ginger boy is looking this way," he whispered in her ear. "Dang, he looks mad," he chuckled. "And he's now guiding his partner this way."

Suddenly feeling self-conscious, Hermione willed herself to keep dancing and not look back.

"Oi! Hermione! Who's your date?" Ron called out loudly.

Turning away from Carlos' close embrace, Hermione smiled. "Oh, this is just Dawn's friend, Carlos."

"Nice to meet you, dude! What are your names?" Carlos asked with a wide smile as he ran his hand to caress Hermione's back flirtatiously.

"Ron." Ron did not look pleased and Hermione silently rejoiced.

"Hi! I'm Chloe!" the potential slayer greeted with a grin.

Carlos lifted Hermione's hand up and spun her in one direction and then in the opposite before bringing her against him again. "So Ron, you go to that British boarding school with my girl Hermione, too?"

"Your girl?" Ron looked startled and annoyed at the not so subtle proclamation. "Yeah, what about it?"

Carlos shrugged. "Nothing, man. Just gotta say I'm jealous." He flashed Hermione a pearly white smile.

The song ended and Carlos bowed in an exaggerated fashion to Hermione, who couldn't help but giggle at his silliness. "Hey, you guys want to switch partners?" Carlos asked suddenly.

Ron's mouth flapped like a fish out of water. "Uh."

"Sure!" Chloe said immediately and grabbed his hand. After all, Ron was cute and all but Carlos was older and definitely hot.

"Er." Ron ran a hand through his hair awkwardly. "Wanna dance, Hermione?" he asked quickly.

Hermione sighed internally. This was progress – but Ron could really use some lessons in smoothness from Carlos. "Sure Ron," she smiled as she stepped into his embrace.

* * *

They were dancing in a dark corner of the dance floor and Anya had to admit that the werewolf professor had some nice moves. She turned slowly until her back was against his chest and moved sensually to the slow music. His left arm wrapped around her waist while his right hand ran up and down her arm. He leaned forward until his lips were against her ear and his breath caused goose bumps to ripple across her skin.

"I haven't been out dancing like this since I was young," Remus mused into her ear.

She turned her head slightly so she could make eye contact. "You're still young," she scoffed. Then she grinned playfully "In fact I'm your elder. I should put you across my lap and spank you."

He let out low, throaty laughter. "Anya, you are truly a unique woman."

"So I've been told." She moved her hips in slow circles against him and Remus' arm tightened around her stomach.

"Anya," he groaned into her ear – a sound that made Anya's heartbeat speed up immediately. "You are really quite the dancer."

"I'm quite the kisser, too," she said devilishly.

Remus spun her around until he was staring down into her eyes. "I think it's time I finally tested that out."

With one arm still around her waist, he used his other hand to softly hold her cheek as his lips descended. He was tentative at first but Anya wasted no time in showing him just how ready she was to have him kiss her. She kissed him back eagerly and wrapped her arms around his neck as she pressed against him tighter. As their kiss became deeper all Anya could think was '_about damn time!'_

* * *

Xander and Tonks were sitting in a secluded corner laughing about their recent accomplishment. "How hilarious was it when Spike realized who he was?" Xander guffawed.

"Only about as funny as how easy it was to get him to drink it! I mean, I had no idea playground competition could work on a hundred and fifty year old vampire, but you were right!" Tonks snickered.

"Smart move on sending him to the bathroom so no one would see the change. I had no idea it would be so disgusting," he shivered.

"Do you feel bad putting him through that?" Tonks asked.

"Are you kidding?" Xander exclaimed. "You have i_no_/i idea what it was like living with that dude. This is good payback."

"Oh good!" Tonks said in relief. "Oi, look there he is," Tonks pointed.

"Probably going to go tattle to Buffy," Xander rolled his eyes as he watched the vampire approach the slayer at the bar.

"Well, that's exactly what we wanted! Now let's see Spike try to seduce Buffy while looking like that!" Tonks sniggered.

Xander looked at her in amazement. "You do realize you're perfect, yes?"

"Am I?" she asked demurely while she batted her eyelashes, all the while grinning.

"Oh, yeah," Xander grinned back. On impulse he leaned in and kissed her gently. It was soft and sweet and when he pulled back he knew he was smiling like an idiot. But that was okay – so was she.

* * *

Buffy sipped on her Pepsi – she knew that alcohol plus strange boys equaled badness – and listened to Luke joke about some of the weirder patrons at the bar – like the drunk crown-wearing birthday girl sitting a few seats down with all of her sorority sisters. He was really funny. And hot.

She wondered if he was evil.

But he seemed human so far… So far she had learned that Luke Matthews was twenty-seven years old. He had grown up with only his father, had no siblings, but he did own a black German Sheppard named 'Raven" after his favorite comic book hero. Of course, she would need to ask Xander who the heck 'Raven' was because she didn't pay attention to that stuff.

"Buffy!" a loud British voice interrupted Luke as he stepped in between them. "Buffy, you have i_got/i_ to do something about that damn Boy Wonder of yours, not to mention his little witch too!"

"Giles?" Buffy asked in a puzzled voice. "What are you talking about?" Her initial shock from his outburst subsiding she took in his appearance. "And where are your glasses? And why are you wearing a leather jacket." Her jaw dropped. Oh shit.

"Are you Ripper again?" she screeched. "Cause I'm not about to deal with you trying to get groiny with mom-types and stealing things and beating up cops!"

"What? No!" Giles said in a flabbergasted voice.

"Um, should I leave?" Luke asked in a confused voice.

"No!" Buffy shouted. Giles slash Ripper was not going to ruin her fun flirty time. "Just one moment. This is my friend, Giles. Giles, this is Luke."

"Hello sir," Luke greeted cheerfully.

Giles gave him a scornful look and snorted. "Yeah whatever," he muttered before he turned to Buffy. "Buffy, are you talking to this wanker? What do you see in him? He seems like a poofter; just look at how tight his pants are."

"They're finely tailored," Buffy hissed. "And what's wrong with you?"

"Oh, I'll tell you what's bloody wrong with me. Xander and Tonks tricked me into drinking a potion and now I'm an old man!" he exclaimed with wide eyes.

"Um, Giles, I don't know how to put this nicely but you _iare/i_ old," Buffy whispered gently.

"What? Oh dammit it all to hell. Buffy, I'm not Giles!"

"Huh?"

"I'm Spike!"

"Spike?" she screeched as she almost fell backwards in her chair.

"Yes!"

"How…? Why…? How long will this last?"

"Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum thought it would be a bloody funny prank and said it lasts a few hours," he said glumly.

"Oh." Buffy clapped a hand to her mouth in an attempt to hold back the giggles, but they erupted anyway.

Spike/Giles rolled his eyes. "That's right. Bloody laugh it up!"

"S-Sorry, Spike," she gasped. "This is just too funny! It's like you're all Randy Giles Junior like that one time in the magic shop!"

"Alright, I'm going home. But you better watch your charges because I swear I'll bite Boy Wonder if I ever get the chance." Turning to Luke he sneered. "See that you mind your manners around the lady or I'll use your intestines as tinsel for my Christmas tree," he warned before exiting.

"Sorry," Buffy said to Luke once her laughter subsided. "My friends are just, um, weird."

Luke grinned. "It's alright, my friends are kinda crazy too. You should see us when we watch a game of Quidditch."

Buffy's eyes widened at his words. "Quidditch?" she asked darkly. She knew from Sirius that Quidditch was a Wizarding sport…

Luke suddenly looked very nervous. "Um, well, I suppose I have a tiny confession." He paused and continued when Buffy raised her eyebrow expectantly. "You see, I'm a wizard and I was sent here to-"

He didn't get a chance to finish because in a flash of movement Buffy's hand was gripping his neck in a tight vise that left him gasping for air.

* * *

A/N:

Reviews are always lovely, Dearest Readers :)


	51. The Vision of the TwoFaced Spy

**Chapter 51: The Vision of the Two-Faced Spy**

Buffy's features frosted over as she gave the wizard Luke Matthews a deadly look. She leaned in close, so that way no bystanders would notice that she currently had a tight grip on the man's throat, and then she spoke in a low voice. "So. I was wondering when one of you unmentionable dudes was gonna show up."

Luke let out a strangled laugh. "Unmentionables? Like ladies' underwear?" He raised his eyebrows in amusement.

Buffy raised her leg and kneed the man twice in rapid succession. Luke grunted and his eyes shone with unsaid tears – getting hit in the crotch can do that to a man. "Don't play stupid with me. I know you jerks are after Sirius and Willow. Now give me your wand."

"Buffy, if you could just let me go I could properly explain-" he wheezed.

"Right. So then you can do some spell on me? I don't think so," the blond snorted. "Now give it to me, your magic stick."

Amazingly enough to Buffy the man let out a choking laugh. "I'm afraid after your harsh moves, my magic stick is a bit out of sorts at the moment," he joked.

Sneering at his inappropriate timing for a joke – and because Buffy realized that maybe she should remember to phrase things better – she completely closed off his air supply with a sudden twitch of her hand. Luke's blue eyes bulged and glittered with fear. Within seconds he had recovered a dark wooden wand from his pocket and shakily thrust it into Buffy's hand. She released him and he leaned over gasping and coughing as he held onto his knees. Buffy coolly appraised him as he raised his head; thick black locks hung messily over a forehead that shone with perspiration, blue eyes the color of a husky watched her guardedly, and a vein in his neck throbbed in anger as he clenched his jaw.

"Say nothing more. I know that sometimes you guys can do spells without wands and I swear if you say anything before I tell you to, I will personally stick this wand up your-" she hissed in a quiet voice before he interrupted her with a wave of his hand.

"I got it," he replied stoically with flashing eyes.

"Goody," she said with a false smile. After everything that Willow and Sirius – not to mention Giles – had told her about these dudes Buffy was more than willingly to beat them for even contemplating hurting people she cared about.

* * *

Willow sighed as she avoided Sirius' gaze. Everyone else had coupled up and they were all alone at their table. After their argument she was surprised that Sirius didn't just leave but she figured he just didn't want her to be alone around Kennedy. She just didn't understand why Sirius made such a big deal about their friendship. It was annoying. And weird. After all, it wasn't like she was going to cheat on him! Okay, sure, she had done that once – okay more than once – to Oz in high school, but she wouldn't do something like that anymore! But whatever, if he had nothing nice to say then she would just say nothing at all to him and keep people watching.

And boy, was tonight a night for people watching! On the dance floor she saw Hermione and Ron moving awkwardly and avoiding each other's gazes – which was cute because she could tell that they both had feelings for each other. Luna and Harry, interestingly enough, were also dancing together and looked like they were having a fun time talking and laughing. She turned to point it out to Sirius until she remembered that she was ignoring him.

She let out another sigh.

At least her friends were having fun with members of the opposite sex. It was dark in one corner of the club, but it was clear that Anya had Remus pushed up against a wall and was kissing him fiercely – and it looked like Remus was certainly enjoying himself as well. Closer to the bar Tonks and Xander were making eyes at each other and laughing and at the bar it looked like Buffy was about to get some action as well. She was pressed close against a man with dark black hair and Willow wondered if she was going to kiss him. Except… Wait; was that Buffy's hand around his throat?

Willow stilled as she watched the scene unfold; prepared to do something at any minute to help her friend. Finally Buffy yanked the man away from the bar and headed in their direction.

Breaking her rule about ignoring Sirius, she tapped him on the arm and pointed towards Buffy and the brunette. "I think we got trouble coming our way."

"Who's that?" Sirius asked as Buffy threw the man towards their table.

"Wizard," she replied tersely as she tossed a wand at Sirius. "He's one of those Unmentionable dudes."

Willow's eyes widened and she grabbed Sirius' hand, suddenly not caring anymore about their fight. A silent wave of panic took over Sirius as his eye twitched and his body stilled.

"They're here?" Willow gasped. "Are there more?" She released a wave of energy throughout the room as she magically scanned the area for wizards and witches. The stranger gazed at her in wonder during her silent spell.

"Merlin, you're powerful," he breathed in wonder.

Buffy palmed the back of his skull and slammed his head against the table, leaving the wizard with a bloody nose. "What did I tell you about the talking thing?" she growled.

"He's alone," Willow informed them. "I can't sense anyone else."

Sirius' lips curled into a frightening smile. "Good. Let's get this wanker home and figure out why he and his cronies are so intent on capturing us."

* * *

After notifying everyone, they had all quickly departed The Bronze via apparation or car. In an effort to lessen the opportunity of escape for the man Buffy named Luke Matthews, Sirius had personally apparated him back to the Summers' residence. His blood was boiling at the realization that a simple night out had almost resulted in catastrophe. While he and Willow had been arguing – which was something he was already feeling sick about – an Unspeakable had been close enough to capture the both of them.

Silent in his endeavors, Sirius practically dragged the man down to the basement and flung him into a conjured metal chair with half a dozen straps of leather that quickly reined the man in tightly. Gripping his wand tightly, he began pacing back and forth as he debated what to do. On one hand, this man wasn't necessarily evil – he could just be following the orders of the Ministry – so it would not do to hurt him more than necessary. On the other hand, they needed to learn everything possible about the plans of the Unspeakables and get them the hell away from Sunnydale.

After hearing the sharp pops of apparition upstairs, soon Buffy, Remus, Willow, and Tonks made their way into the basement. At the sight of the five of them, Luke Matthew's eyes widened in fear.

"Look! Before you guys do anything you need to know the truth!" he said frantically as he struggled against his bindings.

Buffy stepped in front of him, crossed her arms, and gave him a disdainful look. "The truth. That would be a nice starting point. Tell us, why are you after Willow and Sirius?"

Luke's forehead crinkled in confusion. "What? I'm not after them! And I'm not a freaking Unspeakable – I'm an OSS Agent. We're similar to the Aurors of Britain and work for the Office of Special Services."

Sirius felt Willow sidle up next to him and place her hand protectively on his arm. It amazed him that even after their fight – and yes, he knew he had been an ass – she still loved him. "Not making it better," Willow said in a dark voice to the agent.

"Yeah, we have some issues with Auror types trying to kill us," Sirius added.

"I heard about what happened at Hogwarts," the man admitted. "But I am an OSS Agent with the American Department of Magical Affairs – we don't associate with our British counterparts."

Buffy leaned over threateningly until she was at eye level. "Then why are you here?"

"You mean besides trying to hook up with the hottest blond in Sunnydale?" he commented lightly with a grin.

Buffy frowned and Sirius could tell that she was refraining from hitting the man again. "Yes, besides that," she snapped with a roll of her eyes.

"Katherine Asp, the Secretary of the Department of Magical Affairs – she's the equivalent to the president in our world – ordered me to come here and asses the Hellmouth situation."

"Right," Buffy scoffed. "Because we get a lot of you wizard types here a lot."

"Yes, it seems rather convenient that the Secretary would send someone here now," Sirius commented thoughtfully as he gave the man a hard look.

"Who do you think helped take care of the Hellmouth before you came here, slayer? A specially trained team of OSS Agents and members of the Office of Conservation – they're responsible for magical animals – did," Luke said contemptuously.

"What?" Willow asked in shock.

"You're lying," Buffy stated.

"No, I'm not. But it was getting to be too much and popular opinion didn't like the amount of deaths that occurred during agent deployment. After all, our country is littered with hotspots of demonic activity and it's impossible to patrol them all. So when our Secretary heard about you through our Watcher's Council liaison they lured your mother here with the art gallery position."

"What?" Buffy screeched. She gave them all a baffled look and then shouted, "GILES!"

Two thundering pairs of feet came down the stairs. "Yes?" asked Giles who was dressed in dark trousers and a green sweater.

"What's up, Slayer?" asked a second Giles in a leather jacket.

Sirius gaped at the two identical men and noticed that both Willow and Remus seemed surprised, although Tonks had a mischievous grin in place. "How are there two of you?" Sirius asked.

"Your little witch cousin and her new boyfriend gave me something called polyjuice and now I'm all dressed up like an anal-retentive old man," Spike answered with a glare in Tonks' direction before he suddenly grinned. "But then I realized how much fun it would be to annoy Ripper here and things are suddenly all rose-tinted again."

Sirius bit back a laugh and reminded himself to congratulate Tonks later.

"Yes, thank you ever so much Tonks for this exploitation of my image," Giles said in a cool voice as he grimaced at Spike.

"Oh, er, sorry Rupert," Tonks said in a guilty voice as she looked down at the floor.

"Whatever, that's not important now," Buffy said dismissively. "Giles, did you know that the American wizards are the one who orchestrated my move to Sunnydale?"

Giles' eyes widened in alarm. "No, that I've never heard of."

"You wouldn't have," Luke informed. "My aunt – she's the Secretary – only spoke to the Head of the Watchers' Council, Mr. Travers."

"Well that's all rather convenient, but why are you here today in Sunnydale?" Sirius asked with intense curiosity.

"My other aunt, Sophia Asp, is," Luke's face darkened with grief, "_was_ a seer. I was with her last month at her home in New Orleans visiting and heard the last part of a vision – right before a masked wizard and five robed men attacked us."

"Robed men?" Giles joined in the questioning. "What did their faces look like?"

Luke sighed heavily. "I did not get a good luck at them because I was dueling the masked wizard but there was something wrong with their eyes."

"How did you escape?" asked Remus in a soft voice as he eyed the OSS Agent warily.

Luke's eyes clenched tightly and the vein in his neck jumped. "I saw those bastards run a knife across her throat. Aunt Sophia was always out of sorts after a vision so she didn't even know what was happening – she was helpless. When it became clear that I was losing, I apparated away to bring in reinforcements. When we returned they were gone," he answered in a controlled, but angry, voice.

There was something about the grief in the man's voice that led Sirius to believe him, but he was still cautious. "While we are sorry for the murder of your aunt, that still doesn't explain why you are here."

"Aunt Sophia had several visions concerning the Hellmouth and something she called the First Evil. She kept warning my Aunt Katherine to send reinforcements to Sunnydale but Aunt Katherine wasn't concerned. After all, no offense, but there seems to be an apocalypse here once a year and nothing bad seems to happen in the end. So she just brushed it off."

"Yeah, nothing bad happens because my friends and I risk our lives every year!" Buffy huffed angrily. "Would have been nice to have some wizard dudes help out once in a while."

Luke shrugged as much as the leather straps would allow. "I'm sorry Buffy. It's all politics – I don't get it and that's why I have avoided them. But after Sophia's murder, Aunt Katherine sent me down here secretly to see how I could help – under the radar of the other Department of Magic officials of course."

"Of course," Buffy responded with a frown.

"So you're not trying to capture Sirius or me?" Willow spoke up anxiously.

"No," he replied with a harsh laugh. "Aunt Sophia knew things about you two – when word came about the Hogwarts battle and a member of the Office of Transportation raised the alarm that they suspected you had opened a portal to return to Sunnydale, she informed Aunt Katherine not to worry; said both of you were going to be needed at the end."

Sirius drew Willow even closer to him in a protective hold. "At the end?"

"I don't know what she meant," Luke sighed. "And that's why Katherine sent me here. Aunt Sophia's murder means that someone knew about her visions and if someone knows her visions then they will probably come after you next. She wanted me to help out where I could. Not to mention, I want revenge on those bastards who killed her," he growled.

Feet pounded down the staircase as Kennedy and Xander arrived. "What's going on?" Xander asked.

Kennedy sneered as she raced to Luke and jabbed his forehead with her wand. "Let me guess, this is an Unspeakable spy? Shall I kill him?" she threatened in a low voice.

"Kennedy, hold up. He says he's an OSS Agent and here to help," Buffy quickly explained.

She let out a sharp laugh. "Right, so he says. Trust me, OSS Agents are known for their trickery here. They will say anything just to get their mark. You may not understand since you are unfamiliar with the Wizarding world here, but trust me on this. You can only believe this guy as far as," she glanced around, "Giles could throw him."

"And just who the hell are you?" Luke asked in a harsh voice.

"Kennedy Monroe," she said smugly as his eyes narrowed.

"Maybe that's why you seem so familiar," he mused out loud. "I remember my cousin talking about you – you broke her heart. Jenny Asp, remember?"

Kennedy snorted and gave a casual shrug. "Like I can remember all my exes." Turning to Buffy she asked in a bored tone as Luke glared at her, "So can I kill him now before he calls in for reinforcements?"

Sirius had to fight not to roll his eyes at the potential slayer. Between her general attitude and her constant attempts to woo Willow – even though his too-sweet girlfriend really just thought that Kennedy wanted to be friends – he i_really/i_ disliked her. He was not surprised at all that she thought of her former girlfriends with such callousness – if only Willow would see that side of her.

"No, Kennedy. We do not kill humans, remember? Listen," Buffy sighed as she ran a hand through her hair. "Let's meet upstairs to discuss this. Who can stay downstairs to watch Luke?"

"I can," Kennedy said with an eager smile.

"How about someone not feeling all wand-trigger-happy right now?" Buffy asked the others in a wry tone.

"I'll stay," Willow offered. Sirius looked down at her in surprise – she wasn't usually one to go on guard duty.

"Sounds good, let's go," Buffy said as she headed upstairs.

"Are you sure you'll be okay on your own?" Sirius asked in concern.

"Yes," she scowled. "I can take care of myself, ya know. Plus, he doesn't even have a wand and we're in the basement. Besides, just because of the brief fear that the Unspeakables were taking you away made me all worried about you, but do not think that we're okay. I'm still bad at you," she informed him sternly.

Sirius sighed. He was such a screw up. "Willow, I-"

She held up a hand and looked away. "Nope, don't wanna hear it right now. Off you go to the Scooby meeting."

Biting his lip, Sirius nodded and followed everyone up the stairs.

Willow observed the wizard silently for a moment. Noticing the dried blood on his face around his nostrils she grabbed a washcloth, dunked it in a spare glass of water someone had left, and began cleaning his face. "How do you feel?" she asked when she was finished.

"Better, thanks for cleaning me up," he said with a grim smile. "The slayer is a lot stronger than they mentioned."

"Yeah, she is. You really don't want to make her angry – so for your sake I hope that you're not lying," Willow warned.

"I'm not. I could prove it if you like. The Department of Magical Affairs has a West Coast Headquarters located in the Wizarding part of Portland. If you met the Secretary, would that make you trust me?" he offered with sincere eyes.

"Maybe," Willow said cautiously, knowing that once Luna's uncle returned from his holiday trip they needed to travel there anyways.

"Oi, Red?" came Giles' voice from the stairway.

"Gi- er, Spike?" Willow asked in surprise as she realized this 'Giles' was wearing leather. "What's up?"

"The slayer needs you for something. Not sure what. I wouldn't have played lapdog for her except I'm tired of hearing Kennedy and Buffy argue about what to do," he explained with a roll of his eyes.

"Oh, okay. You'll watch Luke?"

"Sure, though I doubt the wizard's really getting out of here," he grinned wolfishly at the man.

"Alright then. See you later." Spike didn't reply to her, instead he was whistling a soft tune under his breath.

Willow walked into the living room and saw everyone in the house participating in the meeting. Buffy had mentioned that she wanted to keep the potential slayers informed as apart of their training but Buffy was still surprised to see the Hogwarts students – likely no one had noticed them there with everything else going on.

"Buffy! I'm telling you, OSS agents are bad news! I mean, just twice in the last year my father's paper published two investigative reports on their lack of ethics!" Kennedy argued with fervor.

"And I'm telling _you_, no matter what we do not kill humans. And if it's possible that Luke's on our side then we should take advantage of it. Maybe his aunt can tell the British Ministry to leave Sirius and Willow alone, not to mention it's always good to have more warriors."

"Buff?" Willow interrupted and all eyes went to her. "Spike said you needed me for something."

"No," Buffy said slowly with a frown. "I never said that." Her eyes widened in realization as she jumped up and leapt across the room. "SPIKE! Fight the First!" she shouted as she ran to the basement and down the stairs.

Willow and the others followed as quickly as their non-slayer legs would take them. Willow started down the basement stairs just in time to see Buffy yank Spike away from Luke's bleeding throat. The vampire lunged at her but Buffy flipped him and thrust her fist into his temple enough times until he passed out. Meanwhile, Willow ran to Luke's side and Sirius undid his leather straps. She placed a finger to his throat as she began to inspect his wounds.

"His pulse is low and he lost a lot of blood, judging by his color, but I think he's going to be okay. I need bandages though and we should take him to a safe room away from Spike," Willow stated.

"We can put him in my room," Remus suggested. "I already have wards created to halt my escape during the full moon so if I activate them Luke will not be able to escape or let Spike attack him again."

Luke opened an eye and let out a low groan. "That old man is a vampire, did you know?" he asked Willow weakly. She glanced over to where Buffy was shackling the unconscious Spike who still appeared as Giles.

"Yeah, sorry about that," she offered with a wince. "Sometimes the First Evil takes him over and while we've been really careful I guess we thought that was over."

"Maybe you shouldn't trust him," Luke said hoarsely. "He may have been the one my Aunt Sophia foresaw."

Willow realized that the others were drawing closer to listen to Luke. "What do you mean?"

Luke blinked and took a deep breath. "I missed the first part but it's what she said before she was killed," he informed them before he began the recitation.

i

"_He will make her his bride_

_They will sit at the First's right side_

_Her Spell will go unsaid_

_Resulting in bloodshed _

_The girls will all die_

_All because of the two-faced spy_."

With one more shaky breath, he closed his eyes and fell asleep, leaving everyone staring in bafflement at one another and casting suspicious looks at Spike.

* * *

A/N:

Oh dear me, it does get much harder to find time to write when there is beautiful spring weather and movies featuring pretties like Robert Downey Jr (yay Iron Man II) so this chapter took far longer than normal. Please be kind, dearest readers, and leave some reviews so I can get some positive reinforcement for reading! :)

Gracias!

****American Department of Magical Affairs – I am basing my version of the American Wizarding Government on the content provided in this Harry Potter wiki: .com/wiki/Department_of_Magical_Affairs


	52. Like Godfather, Like Godson

**Chapter 52: Like Godfather, Like Godson**

"Padfoot, there you are!" Remus exclaimed in exasperation as he found Sirius outside grooming Buckbeak. "It is already eight and Tonks is getting the children ready to depart, aren't you coming?"

Sirius sighed as he gave Remus a grim look. "Yeah, I just don't want to admit that Harry's leaving. It's been wonderful having him back, not to mention getting to know Tonks again."

Remus gave his friend a concerned look. "Yes, but its mid-January already and the spring term starts on Monday. I'm sure Harry can visit again, plus you still have the two-way mirror. Besides, with that Luke fellow showing up last night and Spike being controlled by the First, they really shouldn't be here.

"You're right, Moony," Sirius sighed dejectedly as he put away Buckbeak's brush. "Where is everyone now? Living room?"

"If by everyone you mean Willow, since I noticed that you slept on the couch last night, then she's in the kitchen baking cookies for the children," Remus informed with a wry smile.

Sirius frowned at his friend. "Sometimes I really hate how well you know me," he complained.

"Yes, speaking of how well I know you, I cannot help but wonder what you did to make Willow angry with you."

Sirius folded his arms and stared at his friend. "What makes you think it is i_my/i_ fault?" he asked in a surly tone.

"Because I know you," Remus sighed. "You may have excelled at bedding women when we were younger but you had a penchant for eventually saying or doing the wrong thing that resulted in plenty of hexes and hospital visits."

Sirius considered his options but figured it would be easier to just tell Remus what had happened because he knew his friend wouldn't stop pestering him until he did. "Remember that bet from the Wizards versus Slayer night? About Team Slayer getting to ask any Team Wizard member to dance at The Bronze?"

"Yes."

"Well that slag Kennedy immediately asked Willow to dance and when I told Kennedy no, Willow got angry with me and danced with her anyways. 'Oh, it's just as friends, Sirius,'" he repeated in a falsetto voice. "Rubbish," he growled.

Remus slapped a hand to his forehead. "Padfoot, are you seriously telling me you answered for your girlfriend and essentially ordered her around in fit of jealously?" he asked sardonically.

"Ah, yes," he replied with narrowed eyes.

"And you don't understand why Willow is angry with you?" Remus asked drolly.

"Well, no!" he huffed as he threw his arms up in exasperation. "I mean, doesn't she understand that Kennedy is trying to swoop in?"

Remus walked closer and gave Sirius a concerned look. "Padfoot, I don't understand. Regardless of what Kennedy may or may not be doing, you never were the jealous type."

"I know, Moony," he sighed. "But for one, I never cared about a woman like this before. And…" Sirius trailed off; suddenly feeling shy of explaining some of his reasoning.

"And what?" Remus prompted him kindly.

"Aw, Moony, it's stupid. Never mind it." Sirius ran two hands through his long hair and tied it back at the nape of his neck.

"You do know that you can tell me anything, right Sirius? I won't judge you," Remus said in a serious tone.

Sirius internally debated while gnawing his lip before spilling his thoughts. "Alright, alright." He sighed. "It's just that, I can't help but wonder if Willow misses being with a woman. And Kennedy – although she is a bitch and as authoritative as a bloke – is a woman. Can't help but wonder if Willow's going to get bored with me," he shrugged.

"Padfoot, you really are an idiot, you know that?" Remus sighed as he shook his head. "Willow loves you and she's not going to run off to Kennedy just because she misses women. But," he held up a finger to make his point, "she i_will/i_ run off if you keep acting like a mindless barbarian and act like you don't trust her."

Sirius was silent for a moment before he nodded slowly. "I guess you're right, Moony."

"You _know_ I'm right."

"Alright, already. You are right. I'm a bloody idiot, happy?" he snarled at Moony's superior tone, feeling a bit touchy about his foolish actions.

"So how are you going to apologize to Willow?"

Sirius glanced over at Buckbeak and smiled. "I think by incorporating an old friend."

* * *

Xander was nervous. There was no other way to explain his feelings right now. After finally getting to spend quality time with Tonks at The Bronze last night and kissing her… Damn, he really did not want to say good-bye to her today. After all, who knew if and when he'd ever see her again? She did live far away and he was also currently dealing with the latest apocalypse, after all.

His love life really sucked. Either the women were demons or they lived on another continent. Wonderful.

Brushing his sweaty palms against his jeans, he paused outside the door to her room. He realized that he wanted to tell her good-bye away from everyone else – everyone else meaning Anya – and figured she would still be in her room packing. After all, she was a girl and if he knew girls he knew they weren't ready to leave until ten minutes after the scheduled departure time.

Seeing that the door was ajar slightly, he peeked in. Spotting no one, he stepped inside and decided to wait for Tonks – that is, if she was still coming back. Scanning the room he realized that one side was bare and realized that she was probably already downstairs. He glanced at the other side, Kennedy's side, and checked out her decoration attempts. Hung on the wall was a Quidditch poster that read 'Boston Banshees: National Champions' and it featured stern men and women sitting on brooms and wearing green robes. But what really caught Xander's eye was nestled on the bed next to an open backpack and several pieces of jewelry.

"Ooh, shiny," he admired as he stepped closer to golden lamp – like something out of Aladdin – that shone brilliantly under the sunlight that streamed through the window. He felt this compulsive urge to touch it – after all, who wouldn't want to pick up a golden lamp and have a singing genie? He reached out to grasp the handle when a cold voice interrupted him.

"Just what _are_ you doing?" Kennedy hissed.

Xander quickly jumped up and spun around to give her an innocent smile. "Just looking for Tonks."

"And rifling through my possessions?" she asked with narrowed eyes.

He shrugged guiltily. "I wasn't rifling per say; I just saw the lamp and it looked all shiny and I just wanted to touch it just once," he babbled quickly. "Sorry."

Kennedy gave him a long, considering look. "That lamp has been in my family for hundreds of years – legend says it did harbor a genie once if that's what you're thinking. Its how my family got rich and now we keep it as a good luck charm. My dad gave it to me when I left," she explained quietly. "So I'd appreciate if you didn't touch it. It's not supposed to be touched by non-family members."

"Sure, Kennedy. No problem. That's a pretty cool legacy though."

Her lips quirked into a smile. "Yeah, it is pretty cool. Ready to say good-bye to the British people?"

"Yeah," Xander said in a relieved voice. He didn't know Kennedy that well and was sure she was going to sound off at him for messing with her stuff. Maybe Willow was right – maybe the girl was alright.

* * *

Xander finally caught up to Tonks in the library speaking with Giles, who was referring her to several texts on dark creatures.

"Tonks, can I have a word?" he all but squeaked out. Gods, he was nervous. They had had fun last night but what if she didn't have as much fun as he thought?

"Sure!" she gave him a bright smile, which relieved some of his doubt. "I'll see you later, Rupert."

"So," he began.

"So," she prompted with sparkling eyes.

"I just wanted to say that, um, I'm goingtomissyou," he said in a rush of air.

Tonks grinned at his obvious nervousness. "I'm sorry, what was that you said? Can you repeat it?" she asked cheekily.

He pursed his lips as he realized she was making fun of him. "Tonks," he reprimanded.

She giggled and grabbed his hands. "Okay, sorry. Sometimes I just can't help but tease people. My nickname growing up, for all intents and purposes, by my oft-exasperated father was 'cheeky bugger'," she grinned.

"Can't imagine why," he stated dryly.

"Oi, you can keep you opinions to yourself, mister," she chided in an easy tone as she swatted his arm. "I mean, here I was, all about to miss you and your cuteness, but now I'm starting to reconsider."

"Me and my cuteness, huh?" he asked with a smile and waggled brows. "Well, maybe this will keep you from reconsidering." He lifted up the plastic shopping bag that he had brought into the room and pulled out a white and blue box.

She gave it a curious look. "Twinkies? Isn't this what Buffy referred to as your 'Popeye Spinach'?"

He grinned. "You said you never had them and I thought it was important that you try 'em. It's nothing big," he shrugged, "but something to remind you of America." _'iAnd me_/i_,'_ he silently added.

Tonks set the box on the table and flung her arms around him. "Thank you Xander, you are very thoughtful. I wish we had been able to hang out more," she mumbled into the crook of his neck.

He squeezed her tightly, knowing that this might be the last time he saw her. "Me too," he agreed.

She pulled back and looked into his eyes. "Don't forget me, okay? After all, I know how common demon women are in Sunnydale," she joked, but he saw a hint of seriousness in her eyes.

"I could never forget you," he promised her before pulling her up for a one last good-bye kiss.

Yup, romance on the Hellmouth really sucked sometimes.

* * *

Dawn grinned at Hermione and gave the younger girl a tight hug. "It's been fun having a new witchy friend, 'Mione." She pulled back and put her hands on the girl's shoulders. "Now remember, if you want him you gotta get all 'grr' and get him, okay?" she advised.

Hermione smiled. "Alright, I'll try. He can be awfully thick sometimes."

"It's Ron, thick is his middle name," Harry commented with a chuckle as he shuffled some extra gifts around in his trunk in order to get it to shut properly.

"Well, Mr. Potter, why don't you tell him to brighten up? He is your best friend after all," Dawn asked.

"Well, b-because. I don't know," he shrugged. "We don't talk about that sort of stuff."

Dawn snorted and caught Hermione's eye. "Boys," they sighed in unison.

"Right, like girls aren't flat out crazy. Speaking of which, you haven't seen Molly at all, have you? Apparently Luna told me to watch out because Molly and Chloe were plotting to give Ron and I good-bye kisses in front of i_everyone_/i," he groaned.

"Chloe said that, did she?" Hermione bristled. "We'll see about that!" She spun off and left the living room with an air of anger surrounding her.

Dawn began laughing as she sprawled on the couch, causing her shirt to ride up several inches. "Oh poor Harry Potter!" she called out dramatically as she touched the back of her hand to her brow. "The Chosen One is beloved by all the females! What shall he do?"

"Considering that I know way more hexes then you do, you should probably watch what you say," Harry threatened as he brandished his wand. "Not to mention, you are still wandless."

"What's that you British people say? Piffle! Piffle to that I daresay," she smirked as she attempted an accent.

"You know, I'm really not going to miss your horrible rendition of a British accent," Harry winced as he covered his ears.

"Oh please, you're so going to miss me. Thanks to me you were able to prank both Sirius i_and_/i Remus, plus I got them to teach us some sweet DADA moves," she grinned in superiority as she drew herself up on the couch and curled her legs under her body.

"Oh, I suppose you were helpful a bit," Harry admitted in an airy tone as he finally locked his trunk. "But considering that you tricked me last week into transfiguring a cotton ball into a rabbit and giving it to Anya, I think that wipes the slate clean."

Dawn dissolved into giggles and Harry couldn't help but join. "Okay that was kind of dirty, I admit, but it was i_so_/i funny! I mean, I've never seen Anya freak out that bad, i_ever_/i_!_"

"Yeah, and then Sirius forced me to do chores the rest of the day," Harry grumbled as he sat on the couch next to Dawn and pulled his trunk upright.

"It was worth it though, wasn't it," Dawn grinned as she ruffled his already untidy hair.

"Yeah, I guess it will be," he smiled devilishly, "after I get you back, of course."

Dawn's eyes narrowed at his words. "Wha-"

"i_Aguamenti_!" he shouted triumphantly as a jet of water streamed out of his wand and hit the top half of Dawn's body.

"Eeeee!" she shrieked as she stood up. "You just hosed me! With your wand!" she screeched. She paused and cocked her head. "How'd you do that, anyways?" Then she shook her head and glanced around the room. "Never mind that. You think you're all big and bad because you have a wand?"

Harry found himself smirking at her question. "As of this minute? Yes."

"Not if I take it!" she shouted as she launched herself at the boy. They landed on the couch as she began wrestling the wand away from him. "Gimme!"

Harry was holding his wand out of her reach and trying to hold her back with one hand and throwing his left leg over both of her legs. "No way! You can't just take a wizard's wand."

She paused in her movements and looked down at him from her position above his body. "Well if I can't take it, do you wanna give it to me?" she asked innocently with wide eyes.

"No," he snorted. "Do I look mental?"

Dawn's lips pressed into a thin line. "Fine then," she said before she attacked his sides with a barrage of tickling movements. He jerked underneath her as he began laughing.

"What are you doing? Stop!" he gasped between laughter, still holding his wand as far away as possible.

"I'm tickling you, duh. Now give me the wand."

"No one," he let out a loud laugh as she touched a sensitive part of his stomach, "ever tickles me! And no, you can't have it!"

"That's a shame," she said with a frown before she lunged forward and jerked the wand out of his hand. "Mine!" she shouted triumphantly.

"Dawn!"

"_Aguamenti_!" she incanted, remembering Harry's words. Dawn always did have a way with words – maybe it was something the monks did. Suddenly a geyser of water smacked Harry in the chest and pushed him against the wall.

"Oops! Harry, you okay?" Dawn cried out as she moved her hand down and saw him slump against the wall; his glasses in a skewed position. She knelt down next to him and touched his cheek in concern. "Harry?" she questioned.

"Dawn," he rasped as he opened one eye, "you are _so_ dead." Then he grabbed her waist and began wrestling with her for the wand.

"What is going on here?" Buffy's voice broke through their laughter. They turned around slowly to face her and saw Willow, Sirius, Remus, Xander, and Tonks with her all looking on with amusement.

* * *

"Right, so are you all set Tonks?" Willow asked the pink-haired smiling woman as they followed Buffy through the house.

"Sure am," she answered. "Port-key's in the living room and ready to be activated soon. Haven't seen the kids yet, so hopefully they're ready.

Buffy squeaked as she stepped into the living room and Sirius looked over her shoulder to see what had surprised her – and grinned at the sight of Dawn and Harry wrestling in soaked clothes with his godson laying on top of her, her legs wrapped around him, and Dawn holding a wand away from Harry.

"What is going on here?" Buffy snapped in her best 'mom' voice that made Sirius remember that he was the other 'parent' in this situation and he struggled to maintain a serious face, but his lips kept quirking into a smile.

Harry and Dawn turned to face the adults and quickly sprang apart.

"She took my wand!"

"He hexed me and sprayed me with water!"

"And i_why_/i is my living room soaking wet and you two are all," Buffy threw her hands up in abandonment at her inability to vocalize what it looked like the teenagers were doing, "all whatever?"

"Sorry Buffy," Harry said in a forlorn voice. "It was my fault; I conjured a jet of water at Dawn."

Dawn glanced at Harry in surprise and then shook her head. "No, it's my fault. He didn't do it that much but then I took his wand and did the same spell, except it was like a huge freaking geyser. Which was actually really cool," she giggled, but then faltered at Buffy's stern look. "Unless of course, you don't like your living room getting soaked," she added with lowered eyes."

"You are both so lucky that Harry is returning today or I would make you dry everything by hand," Buffy rolled her eyes.

"Jeez, Dawnster, never thought of you as the 'cougar' type; which is really funny considering your sister is the exact opposite and prefers men a hundred years older," Xander joked with a smirk.

"Xander! I am not a, a cougar!" Dawn cried out in an outraged voice as her cheeks flushed pink.

"Xander! Don't comment on my dating habits!" Buffy shouted at the same time.

"Dawn is a cat?" asked a confused Harry.

Snickering, Sirius walked over and clapped his godson on the back. "Never mind son, it's better if you don't question it." Harry raised his eyebrows at Sirius but still looked perplexed.

Buffy sighed and gestured towards the room. "Sirius? Remus? Help a girl out?"

Sirius whispered to Remus before turning back to Buffy. "Gladly." Sirius smirked as they began drying spells around the room. As they got to the teenagers, they completely dried the two with a spell that also left their hair standing straight up as a result of ecstatic electricity.

"Sirius! Remus!" they both yelled in unison.

"What? It's a good look, don't you think?" Sirius asked cheekily as Tonks let out an alarm to signify the departure for Hogwarts. Soon everyone descended into the living room and was exchanging good-byes with the two wizards and two witches who were leaving.

* * *

"See you, Harry," Luna said with a faint smile. "It was nice having you here for break."

"Thanks, Luna," Harry grinned. "Good luck with learning about all the dark creatures and the potential stuff. By the way," he whispered, "where are Chloe and Molly? I want to make sure they don't ambush me."

Luna hid a batch of giggles with her hand. "Oh, they are rather too embarrassed to come down."

"How so?" Harry frowned.

"Somehow," Luna's eyes twinkled, "their faces broke out into a distasteful amount of pimples."

Harry let out a snort of laughter and felt incredibly thankful – and then slightly guilty at feeling thankful for their discomfort. "How?"

Luna nodded in Hermione's direction, who was chatting to Rona and Vi with a bright smile. "Best ask Hermione."

Harry chuckled. Bollocks, he loved Hermione.

* * *

"Tonks, it's been so nice to meet you," Willow said warmly.

"Likewise, Willow. There are a couple things I thought I should say though."

Willow frowned in worry. "Yes?"

"I know I don't know Sirius all that well, but he really does seem like a great guy. I'm not sure why he keeps looking at you like you just kicked his kitten, but go easy on him. He's had it rough," Tonks said in a concerned tone.

"I know," Willow sighed. "But he needs to smarten up and not say stupid things."

"Fair enough," Tonks shrugged. "And the second thing is, Xander told me about your shovel speeches."

"Oh?" Willow raised a brow in surprise.

"Yes, and how they're tradition. So I just wanted to say that I don't have any family members on my mum's side – they all abandoned her – but now I have Sirius and I don't want him hurt. So if you do hurt him I will transfigure you into a weeping willow tree, chop you down, and use you as firewood. Okay?"

Willow bit back a grin. For a first time shovel speech giver, she was good. "Duly noted. And don't think I haven't been seeing you and Xander eying each other like lovesick puppies." Tonks blushed at the comment. "Now Xander has been my very best friend since kindergarten and even stopped me from ending the world last year. He's had it rough and if you toy with his heart I'll transfigure you into a French pants-wearing, hat-wearing monkey and make you dance in the streets for coins."

"Got it," Tonks nodded. "Glad we cleared that up," she beamed.

"Definitely," she agreed as she pulled the girl into a hug.

* * *

"First off Harry, nice job with the fountain conjuring spell," Sirius congratulated as he clapped the boy on the shoulder. His eyes rover over his godson as he tried to memorize every aspect of James and Lily's child. "Splashing water on them is always a good approach with the ladies. Like godfather, like godson," he added with a snicker and a wistful smile.

"Sirius!" Harry hissed in embarrassment. "I didn't do it like that!" he protested.

Sirius chuckled; he had far too much fun in messing with his godson. "Alright then." Changing topics he asked, "Do you have your mirror?"

"Yes," Harry nodded.

"Good. I want you to call on me as soon as you get back to let me know if you're safe."

"Sirius," Harry groaned as he rolled his eyes. "I'll be fine. You're the one living on a Hellmouth, not me." His eyes suddenly lowered and he appeared to find the carpet extremely interesting. "You're gonna be alright, won't you?"

Sirius' heart filled with love at the evident concern in Harry's voice and he pulled the boy into a tight embrace. "Harry, I vow I'll be alright. I won't leave you. Not again." Sirius swallowed a lump in his throat as he prayed that his vow could be kept.

"Good," Harry commented as the two pulled away. "I'm really glad Willow brought us to visit – this break has been my best one ever. Maybe I can come back in the summer?" he asked hopefully.

"I hope so, Harry. I hope so," Sirius said as he ruffled the boy's hair – silently laughing that it was still sticking straight up thanks to his spell. "You take care, alright? And message me as soon as you're back at the castle."

"I will," Harry promised.

"Alright then! Time to hop off!" Tonks held onto a broken china plate with one hand and her luggage with another. Harry gave Sirius one backwards glance before taking a hold of the plate with Hermione and Ron. A brilliant light went off at the portkey's activation and suddenly Harry and the others were gone.

Sirius sagged against the wall, wishing more than anything that he had Willow at his side right now. But she was on the opposite end of the room and even though she saw him look at her, she glanced away.

With Harry gone and Willow angry at him, he began to feel terribly alone. Somehow he would have to get Willow to forgive him.

* * *

**A/N:**

*Many thanks to KzintiKiller for giving me the plot bunny of an amusing (and maybe someday something more?) Harry/Dawn moment.

*Special thanks to Skyefather for mentioning a good gift that Xander could give Tonks – it tickled my funny bone and heart *teehee*

-- yay for good reviews!

*Fountain Conjuring spell found at : /magic/spells/spells_#aguamenti. And yes, it is learned in the 6th year but pip pip, I had 4th year Harry know it :)

* a French pants-wearing, hat-wearing monkey—a shout-out to the S2 episode where Willow and Oz discuss why the animal cracker monkey has pants and no one else does ;) I love that scene, teehee.


	53. Not Perfect, But Perfect for Her

**Chapter 53: Not Perfect, But Perfect for Her**

"So," Xander asked between mouthfuls of pizza, "what's the scoop on our latest hostage?"

It was Sunday, the day after the departure of their Hogwarts guests and two days after the acquisition of their newest hostage Luke Matthews. Willow had really needed to get out of the house because even though it was now a magical mansion of sorts it was still too small when she was mad at Sirius. Hence, why she had invited her two best friends out for pizza – especially since with all the people living at the house they never got to spend much time together.

"Still sleeping," Buffy replied. "Of course, blood loss will do that to ya. But Remus says the man should be fine later today. And then," she cracked her knuckles, "it's time for a game of twenty questions."

"Do you think he was telling the truth? About trying to help us and all that stuff about the wizards working on the Hellmouth before you came here?" Willow asked.

"I don't know," Buffy said after a thoughtful pause. "Some things about his story seemed very genuine but I really can't believe he just happened to come here during our latest crisis without a secret agenda. But one thing's for sure – if that Secretary lady i_did/i_ orchestrate my move to Sunnyhell just because she was tired of sending her agents here, then we are going to have words. And by words I mean my fist in her face."

"Ouch. An angry is not a happy slayer," Xander commented.

"I am just sick and tired of being Fate's plaything, you know?" she asked in exasperation. "I mean it was bad enough with the Slayer deal and, you know, I accepted it. But this is just one more layer of secrecy that really pisses me off. I mean, would it i_kill/i_ people to keep me in the loop?" she asked them with angry eyes.

"Buff, just forget about it," Xander consoled as he rubbed her shoulder. "Besides, it's not like we need any nancy-boy wizards who are useless without their wand anyways."

"True," Buffy snorted. "Then again, not all of them are useless," she commented as he eyes focused on Willow. "Sirius and I spared last night and he did decent for a normal person – apparently he had a lot of pent-up frustration. Are you guys still fighting after what happened at The Bronze?"

Willow shifted guiltily under their gazes. "Well, not fighting per se. More like I'm just ignoring him."

Buffy shrugged. "I get it. I mean, he was kind of intense when Kennedy asked you to dance. But…"

"What?" Willow asked suspiciously.

"It's just; he seemed real distraught by it last night. I feel bad. I mean, don't you think he kind of has a reason to be worried?" Buffy ventured.

"What?" Willow exclaimed after nearly choking on her water. "I would never cheat on him! I don't get why he would be worried!" she fumed out loud.

"Whoa, hold up Will," Xander interrupted her tirade. "I don't think it's about you. I think it's about Kennedy always giving you the 'come hither' eyes."

"Kennedy does i_not/i_ give me 'come hither' eyes," Willow said scornfully. "Listen," she began in a calmer voice. "I like Kennedy, but just as a friend. Me, her, and Amy have kind of started our own coven in the last couple weeks and it's great! I miss being around the Devon Coven and this helps replace them a bit. Besides, Kennedy and I talked about her crush and she swears she's over it and is totally cool with being friends."

Xander and Buffy shared a knowing look; one that Willow found grating on her nerves.

"Sure Will," Buffy agreed. "Just, you know, try to understand where Sirius is coming from."

Willow took another bite of her pizza. "Fine, I'll try," she responded in an annoyed voice. After all, Xander and Buffy were i_her/i_ best friends – since when should they be sticking up for her boyfriend?

"And speaking of romance in the air," Buffy said with a grin aimed at Xander. "How was the good-bye between you and Tonks? Full of smoochie goodness?"

Xander grinned as he leaned back in his chair. "It was nice," he said simply.

"Oooh, details!" Buffy cried and Willow nodded in agreement. After all, there was nothing like ignoring your own love life when you had a chance to listen to someone else's.

* * *

After the pizza place they spent time at a movie and by the time Willow, Xander, and Buffy arrived back at the house it was dusk and the stars were just beginning to emerge over the fading light of the setting sun. As soon as they reached the door they were greeted by Dawn who was dressed in a white dress shirt, black tie, and matching black pants.

"Good evening," she said in a rich voice. "How are you three doing today?"

"Ah, good," Buffy responded after sharing a confused look with Willow and Xander. "Why are you dressed up and talking funny?"

"Didn't ya hear, Buff? Cougars are known to be classy, dressy women. Betcha Dawnie's just dressing the part," Xander cracked with a smile.

"Shut up," Dawn scowled. Then she smoothed her face and smiled again. "I mean, Master Xander, please refrain from acting like an impetuous fool."

"Impetuous?" Xander asked with wide eyes. "Dawn, don't tell me you're reading a dictionary for fun again."

Dawn rolled her eyes and turned to Willow. "Mistress Willow, will you please go upstairs and change into the elegant dress that I have laid on your bed? Then come back here and I will escort you to your destination."

"Elegant dress? Destination? What are you talking about, Dawn?" Willow asked in confusion.

"Mistress Willow, it is a surprise. Now run along," Dawn said with a small grin.

Willow pursed her lips. "Does this have to do with Sirius? Because I'm still not talking to him."

"No one said you had to talk," Dawn frowned. "Now come on," she grabbed her arm and began leading her up the stairs."

"Dawn!" Willow protested.

"Willow, just trust me, okay?" Dawn pleaded.

"Fine," Willow sighed reluctantly. She followed Dawn up the stairs and was surprised to see a gorgeous green gown embedded with dozens of emerald gems. "Oh my gosh," she sighed at the beauty of it.

"Pretty, huh?" Dawn grinned knowingly. "Now put it on."

Silently Willow donned the gown and marveled at how smooth it felt against her skin. The dress was a halter that clasped at the back of her neck and flared out past her hips. She felt like a princess.

Dawn looked at her with an amazed smile. "You look beautiful, Will. Now let me do your hair and make-up. Oh! And there's jewelry too," she added. By the time Dawn was done working on her Willow's hair was swept up, glittering emeralds shaped like raindrops hung from her ears, and a matching emerald bracelet was glittered on her wrist.

"Dawn," Willow breathed softly as she stared into the mirror. "Thank you."

Dawn hugged her from behind. "I like seeing you happy. Now come on, Mistress Willow, off to your destination," she said in a proper voice.

As Dawn led Willow down the stairs and into the backyard, Willow couldn't help but look forward to whatever Sirius was planning. Even though she was mad at him she was already starting to feel the anger melt away.

"My lady, your chariot awaits," Dawn said with a gesture towards Buckbeak; who for his part spread his wings out and bowed with a happy squawk. They followed suit in bowing but then Willow gave Dawn a curious look.

"So I'm flying?"

"Yup," Dawn grinned. "But don't worry, it's not far so your hair won't get messed up." Pulling out a box, Dawn motioned for Willow to step on it to get on Buckbeak.

Shrugging her shoulders as if to say 'what the hell', Willow climbed aboard Buckbeak and sat side-saddle. "Now where-" she began to ask but the hippogriff propelled off the ground. She shrieked as they became airborne and giggled at the absurdity of her riding a hippogriff. They began circling the house and since their spell only worked against outsiders, Willow could see that the Summers' home was now three stories and very large. And, strangely enough, there was something new. On top of the house was a large patio bordered by an iron wrought fence that enclosed numerous potted plants, including several small trees. Numerous strung golden lanterns twinkled in the twilight and Willow could hear soft violin music playing. As Buckbeak drew closer she saw Sirius seated at a table covered with a white tablecloth wearing a formal tux. His hair was tied back and the soft glow of the lanterns highlighted his handsome features.

As Buckbeak descended onto the patio, Sirius' jaw gaped in appreciation as he looked her up and down. Hastily he got up and made his way to help her down. She gave him her hand and he grabbed her waist to make sure to landed softly.

"Willow," he said in a throaty voice as he caressed her cheek. "You look amazingly beautiful tonight."

"Thanks," she blushed. "It seems I have a fairy godmother because this dress just sort of appeared in my bedroom."

"Indeed?" he asked as his lips twitched. "How… magical," he added with a secretive smile.

"Indeed," she found herself smiling back. Then she remembered how Sirius had been a jerk the other night and frowned. "Hey, don't be all sweet now when you were a jerk on Friday," she reprimanded.

His face fell and Willow felt guilty at the loss of his brilliant white smile. "Willow, I," he sighed. "May we sit first and then I can properly apologize?"

She gave him a considering look. "Alright," she agreed. Mentally, she gave Sirius another point in her book for pulling her chair out for her – it seemed like he was really playing the part of a gentleman today.

Once they were both seated, Sirius clapped his hands regally. "Oh, waitress, please!"

Luna materialized in that quiet way of hers and Willow realized that behind a potted tree was a door that likely led downstairs. Like Dawn, Luna was also dressed in black dress pants, black tie, and a white shirt. Except unlike Dawn, Luna still wore her radish earrings; it amused Willow that the girl never took them off. She wondered if Luna even wore them to bed.

After the girl set down a basket of bread and a plate of oil, she gave them a small smile. "Greetings, Mistress Willow and Mister Sirius. How may we serve you today?"

"Luna, I'll have the lady order first," Sirius said as he waved his hand casually in her direction.

"Er." Willow looked down and realized there was no menu. "What are the options?"

"Oh, anything you like!" Luna said brightly. "Our chefs are quite prepared to bring you anything you desire. Of course, I personally recommend steamed carrots simmered in honey as a side with roasted plimplies stuffed with cabbage."

"Oh," Willow made a face. "Um, that's alright." Willow didn't want to hurt the girl's feelings by being grossed out but Luna really did have the oddest tastes. "Well, could I have chicken marsala with garlic mashed potatoes?"

"Certainly. And for you, sir?"

"I'll have a steak, medium-rare, please."

"Excellent. Enjoy your bread!" Luna waved and left for the stairs as Sirius began pouring two glasses of red wine that he had conjured.

"So," she prompted as he handed her a glass.

Sirius sighed softly and set the glass down. "First off, I know I can be a right idiot at times, Willow. I'm terribly sorry for acting like I didn't trust you the other night."

"Well why did you even act like that in the first place? I mean, that was really ridiculous, Sirius. And it hurt my feelings that you don't trust me," she added in a softer voice.

He took her hand in his own and grey eyes gave her a sorrowful look. "Willow, I am incredibly regretful of how I acted towards you. It's not that I don't trust you; because I do. I just," he paused as he took a deep breath. "You're the first woman I've ever loved and that scares me."

Her face crinkled in confusion. "Scared how?"

Sirius gave her a sheepish smile and shrugged uncomfortably. "I know it sounds stupid; I don't really know how to explain it."

"Try," Willow urged; dying to know what was on his mind.

"Life in Azkaban was hell; absolutely the worst, darkest part of my life. But then suddenly I meet you and then Remus becomes part of my life again and then so does Harry and Tonks, and even my cousin Andromeda through post? It's like my life has completely turned around and I don't trust it. I'm afraid that I'm going to lose it all; that I'm going to lose you." His eyes darkened with worry and she felt his grip on her hand tighten.

"Sirius, you're not going to lose me," Willow told him as she held a hand against his cheek. "I love you; even if you are an idiot sometimes," she added with a smile.

His face brightened. "I love you, too." He delicately pulled her hand off his face and kissed her palm. "I really am sorry."

"Just," she sighed and shrugged. "Just don't do that again, okay? Because we really are just friends. Kennedy, Amy, and I have started our own mini-coven and they've been really supportive in centering myself lately and giving me that taste of the Devon Coven. So I can't have you getting angry whenever I hang out with her, okay?"

"You really think she just wants to be friends?" Sirius asked skeptically.

"Sirius. Look," Willow rolled her eyes slightly. "We discussed it and we're just friends. She knows I love you and I for one would never trade Kennedy for you. I promise," she declared.

"Okay," he agreed. "I promise I'll be better around her."

"Thank you," Willow said as she leaned across the table and kissed him. His hand cupped the side of her face and she shivered at his touch; goddess how Willow had missed him in just the last two days. As she settled back into her chair, still holding hands with him, she smiled as she took a sip of her wine.

"So, have you spoken to Harry, yet?" she asked.

"Yes," he smiled. "He called on me in the mirror today to tell you thank you for the cookies – apparently everyone in Gryffindor loved them."

Willow laughed. "Nothing like emotional baking to make friends," she joked.

"Trust me, Harry loves you. Although," he added thoughtfully, "he did have a funny reaction when I asked him if he wanted to speak to you through the mirror. His face got all red and he began babbling incoherently. In between babbles I coerced him to tell me what happened the last time he saw you in the mirror," Sirius raised his eyebrows expectantly.

"Oh?" Willow squeaked.

"Tsk tsk, Willow. And to think we thought that Dawn was the cougar in this house, but here you are the one flashing teenagers," he winked.

Willow clapped her hands to her face to hide herself from Sirius. "He told you?" came her muffled reply.

"Not quite, but you just confirmed it," Sirius laughed.

"Oh my goddess, that was so embarrassing," Willow moaned. "Those boys wouldn't look me in the eye the first week they were here!"

"Willow," he chuckled. "It's alright. All that did was just give me extra 'cool' points with the boys for bagging the hottest chick here," he joked as she gave him a dirty look.

"Sirius Black, you should be ashamed of yourself," she chided as she smacked his hand resting the table.

"Alright, I'm sorry!" he said as his laughter subsided. "Still though, that was bloody hilarious."

"I bet," Willow rolled her eyes. "By the way, don't think I didn't spot the similarities between Harry soaking Dawnie and you splashing me back at the cabin, mister."

"Hey!" Sirius threw up his hands. "I in no way told Harry about that; although I got to say that I am proud of m'boy. He might turn into a ladies man just yet!"

"You are such a bad influence," Willow groaned but her eyes sparkled with mirth. "Speaking of which, you think Harry likes Dawnie? Or even Luna; they were dancing together at The Bronze."

Sirius shrugged. "Not sure. The boy doesn't like talking about girls much; he gets very uncomfortable. But for his health I hope he would avoid the sister of a slayer. Poor boy already has enough near-death experiences as it is."

Just then Luna brought out their dinners. As Willow smelled the heavenly scent her mouth began watering. "Wow, my compliments to the chef," she told Luna. "Wait, who is the chef? I hope not Dawn because she likes to experiment in the kitchen too much for my taste."

"Oh no, Dawn got banned from the kitchen after she spilled the milk earlier. No, Remus and Anya are cooking tonight. Although," she said thoughtfully, "I have yet to see them do much cooking. Every time I walk in their lips are pressed together, which cannot be very productive."

Sirius and Willow snickered at that; Willow was happy that Anya and Sirius' friend were enjoying each other's company. "Well, tell them I said thanks, okay Luna?"

"Sure," she smiled and waltzed away – literally, in fact.

"Thank you, for this," Willow said as she waved her hand at their surroundings.

His look turned serious as he gave her a deep look. "Of course, Willow. I'd do anything for you," he said in a way that made her heart flip.

"Now," he grinned as he stood up and held out a hand. "Would my lady care to dance before we dine?"

Willow knew she had a silly smile on her face as she nodded. "Why, of course, good sir," she answered as she took his hand.

Yes, Sirius' actions Friday night proved that he wasn't perfect, but that was alright… because Willow was starting to believe that maybe Sirius was just perfect for her.

* * *

**A/N**

*Pimplies: A kind of fish, shaped like a ball with two long, rubbery legs and webbed feet. If you happen to spot a plimpy with its legs tied in a knot, you will know that merpeople are around (/bestiary/bestiary_)


	54. Ambush in Elk Meadow

**Chapter 54: Ambush in Elk Meadow**

Buffy eased open the door to Luke's room and peered in at the dark-haired wizard. He was still in bed but his complexion was pinker so Buffy figured he was feeling better. The wounds on his neck had been healed thanks to Remus' skill with a wand but it had taken a while for Luke to recover from the blood loss. Buffy still wasn't sure what to think of the man but she was certainly worried about the First using Spike to attack him.

"Luke?" she called out softly.

His crystal blue eyes blinked open wearily and he gave her a half-hearted smile. "Alas, I fear the vampire killed me after all; for the sight of such an angel clearly indicates that I must be in heaven."

Buffy scowled at the mention of her one-time resting place and Luke's inability to go a moment without flirting. "Trust me, you are definitely not in heaven," she responded tersely.

"Are you sure?" he asked with a smile. "I cannot believe that the mortal world holds such beauty."

"Trust me, I would know," she snapped as she sat down in a chair opposite of him and crossed her arms. "Now, stop trying to be all Romeo and tell me if you're ready to be released."

He arched his brow. "My, my. You have a lovely bedside manner, Buffy. Ever thought of being a Healer?"

"No, I'm more interested in breaking bones than healing them. Want a demonstration?" she replied coolly.

Luke let out a stream of laughter. "No thank you, your pet vampire trying to kill me was enough for me."

"Then stop being so annoying and tell me what you want from us. Why introduce yourself to me in the club if you were all undercover man?"

If Buffy wasn't so sure that Luke was too cocky to do so, she could have sworn he blushed. "Ah, honestly? I was just supposed to observe to see what was going down but when I saw you sitting by yourself at the bar I couldn't stop myself."

"Oh," Buffy replied, feeling both flattered and uncomfortable. "But why observe? Why not be honest from the beginning and offer to help?"

Luke drew himself up and leaned against the wall. "Based on the reports about you, your group isn't the trusting sort. I knew if I just announced myself you would probably try to beat me up – and look how on the money I was," he said with a wry smile. "No, I thought I could help by staying behind the scenes."

"Yeah, James Bond you aren't," Buffy snorted.

"True, but I do look nice in a tux," he said with a brilliant smile.

Buffy rolled her eyes and pretended to yawn. "Suuuuure," she said in a bored voice as she internally laughed at Luke's indignant face.

"So here's the deal," she said as she changed the subject. "Apparently the First wants you dead which is bad for you but potentially good for us. Cuz, I'm not sure if you're the real deal but at least the First hates you, hence the whole 'enemy of my enemy is my friend' at the very least."

"Gee, thanks," Luke responded with dripping sarcasm.

"And I could use reinforcements so you and your magic stick – er, wand," she hastily amended, "could prove useful – if you're up to it."

Grabbing her hand tightly, he gave her a penetrating look. "Buffy, trust me when I say I want to work with you. I want my revenge. Besides," he said in a softer tone as he released her hand, "helping to defeat the First Evil will definitely help me get a promotion at work." He winked at her and Buffy had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. Luke Matthews was a cocky bastard but at least he was humorous.

"Good. But before we officially Scoobie-ize you, we want to verify your story with the Secretary. Luna's uncle just returned from his holiday trip and we need to visit him. Since he's in Portland we'll just kill two birds with one stone. How's that sound?"

"That'll work," he said thoughtfully. "When do you want to leave?"

"I want this done with. How's tomorrow? Bright and early Monday morning?"

"I'll have to send a message to my aunt, if that's alright. Or am I still your prisoner?"

Buffy leaned forward and gave him a hard look. "I'll release you. But I swear to god, if you do i_anything/i_ to make me realize that trusting you was a bad idea I will wear your ribcage as a hat. Okay?"

Luke gulped silently and nodded. "You really are quite creative, aren't you? Do not fear, I completely understand what you mean. You can trust me Buffy, I swear."

With his wide blue eyes glowing at her in sincerity, Buffy was really hoping she could trust him. Because if not, she could have just made a big mistake. "Alright," she answered as she stood up and walked to the door. "Make yourself at home, Luke," she called as she turned around to give him one last look; to which he gave her a grateful smile.

Buffy walked down the stairs so she could inform everyone and get things prepared for tomorrow. She knew that Willow was busy dining with Sirius on the new patio (that she didn't learn about until Remus told her earlier, jeez is she always the last to know about things?) but figured she could let everyone else know. Luckily, it wasn't too hard to find people because she found Xander, Andrew, Vi, and Chloe battling it out in Mario Kart with Kennedy, Rona, and Molly watched them in the living room.

"Ah! Stop spitting those red turtle shells at me!" Andrew shrieked as his car was blown up.

"Mwahahaha!" Vi laughed evilly as pressed more buttons on her controller.

"Oh, yeah? Take that!" Xander shouted as everyone began wailing in misery.

"Nooo! Damn you I hate being tiny!" Andrew griped as his character shrank.

"This sucks! I'm in fourth place!" Chloe complained.

Trumpets began playing as Xander stood up and raised his arms. "Oh yeah! First place! First place! I am the Mario Kart champion of the world!" Everyone else scowled at his antics.

"Whatever, I take loser's place and then you'll get destroyed, Harris," Rona said snarkily.

"So glad to see you taking proper care of the potentials, Xander," Buffy commented from her post against the wall.

Xander gave her a guilty smile once he realized she was there. "Oops. Well, Chloe said she had never played before and Vi was bragging that she was the best, so of course we had to bust it out," he explained sheepishly.

"Uh-huh," Buffy sing-songed. Personally, she thought the potentials should really be spending every second training but last week she had an interesting talk with Sirius and Remus. They were discussing the Wizarding War that they fought in and how even though training was important, so was living life. Of course, it took a couple hours of arguing back and forth before it sunk in, but now Buffy was willing to let the girls blow off some steam – once in a while, anyways.

"Anyways, got an update on our wizard dude. Luna got word yesterday that her uncle is back in town so tomorrow we're going to Portland. Dawn will get her wand and Luke will introduce us to the Secretary."

"DID I HEAR YOU SAY I GET MY WAND?" came Dawn's screaming voice from the kitchen. Seconds later she was panting in the living room and giving Buffy an eager look.

"Yes, Dawn," Buffy replied patiently. "We're leaving tomorrow. Tell Luna to let her uncle know."

Dawn leapt up in the air and skipped back into the kitchen.

"So are we all going?" Molly asked. "I would love to see a Wizarding town!"

"Um, no," Buffy said with a wince as all the potential slayers began groaning. "Listen, you guys still have a price on your heads and I'm not leading all sixteen of us into the open. Just the witches and wizards get to go, plus me."

"So Kennedy and Luna get to go? That's not fair!" complained Chloe.

Buffy fought to roll her eyes. Who knew teenage girls could be so annoying?

"Yeah, I wanna go!" Andrew interjected.

Correction: Who knew teenage girls i_and/i_ Andrew combined could be so annoying?

"They are witches and we're seeing Luna's uncle. Therefore, that makes sense that they go. The rest of you will stay behind with Giles, Andrew, Xander, and Anya."

"If Remus is going I'm going!" Anya called out from the kitchen.

"I'm not a freaking travel agent! Sheesh!" Buffy rolled her eyes.

"You sure the girls and us will be safe?" Xander asked. "Especially with Spike, once again, being crazy in the basement?"

"Spike is fine and he's not crazy," Buffy stated irritably. "Regardless he is chained up and guarded by wards that Remus designed. And the house is protected now by wards so we won't get attacked like before. It'll be fine and we'll only be gone for not even a whole day."

Or at least, that is what Buffy hoped. Here's hoping no one was going to prove her wrong.

* * *

By Monday morning all the wizards and witches of the house, plus Buffy, were looking forward to a trip to the Wizarding community of Portland. It had been decided that first the nine of them would visit Luna's uncle so Dawn could get her wand, then they would spend some time visiting the shops, and later visit the Secretary of the Department of Magical Affairs. While Luke had promised there were no standing orders from the Office of Secret Services to apprehend Sirius and Willow they were not taking any chances. To be safe the two had performed glamours on themselves. Now Willow had curly brown hair and a square face while Sirius had spiked brown hair and a crooked nose, among several other changes to their looks.

Luke held up a bright pink hula hoop. "Everyone ready? It's 9:58."

"Yup! I cannot wait for my wand," Dawn exclaimed as she touched grabbed the hoop.

"Dawn, you do realize that just because you have a wand does not mean that you can do whatever you want, right?" asked a cautious Remus as he took hold.

"Don't worry, Remus. I'll be good. And I promise I'll save all my pranks for Sirius," Dawn winked.

"Hey!" Sirius cried out as he and Willow grabbed onto the hoop. "Don't you dare even think about it."

"Now remember," Buffy said as Anya, Kennedy, and Luna placed the hands around the hoop. "Don't draw attention to yourself and keep in your pairs – Sirius and Willow, Remus and Anya, Dawn and Luna, and Luke, Kennedy, and me. There are too many of us and I don't want anyone getting lost or abducted."

"Yes, mom," Dawn chimed with a laugh. "I mean jeez, do you want us to hold our field trip buddy's hand, too?"

"Dawn, shut – ah!" Buffy let out a as the portkey activated.

Willow felt a tugging sensation around her navel and suddenly they were jerked through upwards. The space around them erupted into a rainbow of colors and as they traveled Willow thought she saw other images dimly flicker as they were passing them. The feeling of lightness was odd but not unpleasant, yet as soon as they landed roughly on the ground Willow felt sick to her stomach. And by the sounds of it, so did at least one other person.

"Willow, sweetheart, are you alright?" Sirius placed a hand on her shoulder. She shook her head, unable to speak for a moment as her head swam with dizziness.

"Oh my gaawd, this is how you guys travel?" Buffy asked in an ill voice. "This is the worst feeling I've ever had. besides the time I watched that movie about a witchy chef and that hottie from Boondock Saints," she added.

"Here, let me help you up," Luke offered congenially as he grabbed her elbow.

"I can get up on my own, you know," Buffy retorted harshly as she stood up unsteadily by herself – she always did hate people trying to take care of her.

"Everyone else okay?" Remus asked and was greeted by an assortment of 'yeses'.

Willow finally raised her head and stood up with Sirius' help. They were in a large grassy meadow that was surrounded by tall evergreen trees that seemed to go on forever. The weather was typical of what she had been told – the sky was overcast and a light sprinkle of rain fell on them. The air was chillier than southern California, only in the forties, and Willow was glad that Luke had advised them to wear jackets.

Suddenly Remus straightened his spine and sniffed the air. "Where are we?" he asked Luke with suspicious eyes.

"Don't worry; they're guardians to the entrance. Our location has always been here but when they decided to build the new Oregon Zoo inside Washington Park we had to get creative in hiding the entrance to Columbia Village," Luke explained.

"Columbia Village doesn't sound all that magical," Dawn commented with a crinkled nose. "Harry told me that their Wizarding village is called Hogsmeade."

"Yes, well sorry if we'd rather name our village after the life-saving waters of the Columbia River than a stupid farm animal," Luke snapped. "Bloody Brits," he muttered under his breath.

A howl sounded through the rain and Willow clutched Sirius' arm. "What was that?" she asked nervously.

"We are in Elk Meadow right now, which is located inside the zoo. On this side of the meadow exists the entrance to the Village, as well as where the wolves live. But don't worry, they are magically trained," Luke explained calmly.

"Great," Willow said with false cheer. The idea of bloodthirsty animals being out in the open really did not comfort her. She glanced over at Remus and noticed he also looked uneasy being around the wolves. Not surprisingly, she also saw Luna was gazing at everything with wide eyes and a dreamy smile.

"Follow me," Luke ordered as he began crossing the meadow. "You see, the village used to exist in the deep woods of this valley but as the Muggles began building the land decreased. Many years ago the former Secretary managed to get the Muggle government to convert this area of land into a park and we set up Muggle repellent charms around the area. When they crafted a park into the woods – quite frankly doing a good job of not terribly disturbing the ancient trees – we managed to get a special breed of wolves in this area. They help prevent Muggles from trespassing while allowing wizards to travel easily."

"How come the Muggles didn't build the zoo over your village?" Dawn inquired.

"Besides the Muggle-repellent charms we also managed to influence their architect. If you ever see a map of the zoo you'll notice that the zoo ends at Elk Meadow. Past there is the stretch of woods where the village is hidden. Muggles avoid it and if they fly over it they just see a stretch of trees," he informed her.

"Cool," Dawn murmured with a wide smile.

Suddenly four loud cracks sounded in the meadow and the air erupted with howling wolves. Sirius, Remus, Luke, Kennedy, and Luna yanked their wands out and Willow tried to see where the newcomers were – something didn't feel right.

Loud cries split the air_. i"Petrificus Totalus!"_ _"Stupefy!" "Petrificus Totalus!" "Petrificus Totalus!"_ /i

Willow felt her arms and legs lock together as she crashed to the ground, landing on her side. Nearby she saw Remus, Sirius, and Luna follow suit.

"Watch out!" Buffy cried as she pushed Kennedy out of the path of a spell.

"Dawn!" Luke cried out as he grabbed the younger girl and yanked her down; narrowly missing a stream of red light.

"We're here for Sirius Black!" yelled a cruel accented voice that erupted in a high-pitched cackle.

"By order of the Office of Special Services, I command you to surrender your wands at once!" Luke declared.

"Ha! Not likely, boy!" he woman cackled. She, like the other three, was dressed in black robes and wore silvery masks that glinted in the light of the spells. "i_Defodio!/i_!" she shouted as she aimed her wand at Luke.

i"_Protego/i_!" The spell bounced harmlessly off and he began blasting spells at the four intruders. Without a moment's hesitation Kennedy joined in the fight.

"You bitch! You're not taking anyone!" Buffy growled as she leapt into the fray.

"Dawn, stay back!" Luke ordered as he jumped and rolled forward to blast a spell at one of the robed men who grunted in pain.

Willow gritted her teeth and tried to move but the spell that was cast on her was strong – much stronger than the one Tonks had done to her at Hogwarts. i_'Of course, you could break out if you just released your magic,/i'_ a dark voice whispered in her air. The worst part was, Willow knew that voice was right. She could single-handedly take out their enemies and fix everyone…

But she also knew that sort of arrogance is what caused her addiction in the first place. No, she would have to control herself and break free without releasing the darker side of her powers. No way did she was to recreate what happened at Hogwarts and slip again.

Hopefully Buffy, Luke, and Kennedy would be able to help them.

* * *

"Remus!" Anya cried out as she touched his shoulder. "Are you okay?" When he didn't reply she began to shake him. "Come on, get up, and kick some wizard ass!"

"Looks like the mangy half-breed isn't up to fighting, love," said an Scottish gruff voice behind her. "Now, I know I'm not supposed to kill anyone today but the boss did just mention people, Seein' as 'ow this beast ain't a man – well, don't think I'll be breaking the rules, will I?" he laughed darkly.

"Don't you i_dare/i _touch him!" Anya spat angrily.

"Right. What's a Muggle broad like you going to do? Now get out ov' me way so I don't break the boss' rules and kill you too, alright?" he asked as he pointed his wand at her.

Anya eyed Remus' wand that lay off to the side, within her grasp. She grabbed it and jumped up to point it at the man. "Leave him alone," she growled like a protective mother bear backed into a corner.

The man began laughing. "'Oo are ye tryin' to kid? Yer not a witch! What are ye gunna do, poke me in my eye?"

Adrenaline coursed through her veins at the dangerous situation. When she was newly mortal she preferred to run away rather than confront evil. But somewhere along the way, thanks to Xander, she had changed. And now she liked Remus and enjoyed their many make-out sessions – no to mention that she was still sexually frustrated and she sure as hell wasn't going to let some masked man kill him before they even got to have sex! Something triggered in her brain and before she allowed herself to think about it she yelled. "i_Stupefy/i_!"

A blast of red light erupted from Remus' wand and smacked the man in his gut before he fell backwards with a cry of surprise. She gazed at the wand in wonder. "What the hell?"

* * *

Buffy performed a front kick that dislodged the woman's wand and followed it with a quick jab to the throat that prevented the witch from incanting another spell. "What's with your masks? Is your face really that ugly that you need to hide it? I mean, I guess the mask is nicer than a paper bag," Buffy commented lightly as she hit the woman across the face.

The witch stumbled and fell to the ground. "You stupid Muggle! You think you're powerful but you do not stand a chance against our master!" Then she began fervently looking through the thick grass for the wand that Buffy had knocked out of her hand.

"Yeah, yeah, that's what they all say," Buffy said as she went to grab the woman. But a force of energy slammed into the back of her skull and suddenly everything went dark.

* * *

"Dawn!" Luke shouted as he grabbed her and pulled her back. "i_Stupefy_!/i" he shouted at the masked man who had narrowly hit Dawn with a spell.

"Dawn, go drag the others to safety. You're going to get hurt out here with a wand," he ordered in a concerned voice.

"You're right! I need a wand!" Dawn shouted as she ducked and tumbled her way to Luna. "May I?" she asked the incapacitated girl as she yanked the wand out of her hand. She felt guilty about taking it but she had to be practical. Off to the side she saw a burly, heavyset masked man knock Anya unconscious with a curse. She said the first spell that came to mind.

"i_Aguamenti_!/i" Like the other day, a geyser of water erupted from her wand and flattened the man against the grass

"One down," Dawn glanced around and saw Luke and Kennedy each dueling a masked person, "two to go? Wait, where's the other person?"

"Right here, little witch," said a smooth, oily voice. Dawn spun around and pointed her wand at him, although her hand trembled slightly. He was tall, far over six feet, and towered over the still forms of her friends. "So you're the Slayer's younger sister? Hmm, interesting."

"Get away from them," she ordered grittily as she noticed his wand slowly pointing at Willow, Sirius, Remus, Luna, and Anya one by one.

"You know, we are here for Black… But I think what will really make today a good day is a murder."

Dawn crept closer as she racked her mind for spells. Sure, she had some Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons but she wasn't an expert at all. She knew 'i_protego/i'_ was a shield spell and some minor hexes that could incapacitate him, but she wasn't sure if she could fire off a spell before he fired off one of his own – one that could kill someone she loved.

"Well, if you're into murder this really isn't the place for you. Trust me, you do not want to mess with us," Dawn responded with more confidence than she felt.

"Why? Because the slayer will be mad if I hurt you?" he snickered.

"Oh yeah," Dawn shook her head. "She'll kill you. Actually, she'll torture you first. She has friends who enjoy torturing for fun. Actually those friends also love me like a little sister and believe me – you so do not want to piss off the Scourge of Europe or William the Bloody!"

His head cocked to the side and she felt him examine her. "True, but then again it would be rather interesting to unhinge the Slayer by killing his sister." He let out a deep chuckle. "Now this is the sort of fun that I have been missing."

He raised his wand and Dawn quickly said, "i_Protego/i_!"

An uproar of laughter was let out at the sound of her spell. "Stupid girl. The killing curse can't be stopped by that."

"Killing?" Dawn asked in confusion; no one had told her about that curse.

"_Avada Kedavra!"_

* * *

**A/N:**

It's been 2 years since I've been in Portland but I still remember it fairly well. However, online maps helped as well. Here's a map of the zoo and you will see Elk Meadow in B-2 & C-2 .

*Unless you live in a cave, you know that Buffy died and went to heaven at the end of S5

*Luke asking Buffy if she ever thought about being a healer is a reference to ladyvisionary's 'Roads Travelled' series on this site. It just made me smile and I randomly thought of it :)

*"This is the worst feeling I've ever had. besides the time I watched that movie about a witchy chef and that hottie from Boondock Saints," she added. ha, a reference to a SMG movie that even she admits to not enjoying :)


	55. The Killing Curse

The sounds of the battle seemed far away as Willow shut her eyes and began to magically examine her bounds. Using her unique sense of magical sight she realized the body-bind spell placed on her had in effect enveloped her body with what resembled tight golden wires that crisscrossed around her. She searched for a while to see if there was a spot where the spell was weakest but it remained strong throughout. Dimly she heard Anya shriek and she began to move quicker in finding a solution. Finally she imagined a sharp dagger and began mystically cutting at her binds. This process required intense concentration due to the strength of the spell but she was slowly and surely making progress.

By the time her ankles and calves were free Willow's attention was snapped to the rest of the world as she heard a cruel, hard voice hiss behind her.

"True, but then again it would be rather interesting to unhinge the Slayer by killing her sister."

Willow's eyes blinked back the cold rain as she scanned the area for Dawn. She struggled to scream for the girl but couldn't due to the spell. Finally she saw her, thirty feet away, standing bravely in a firm stance while pointing a wand.

"Now this is the sort of fun that I have been missing," the man behind her chuckled.

With a renewed burst of adrenaline-fueled energy, Willow began to work on severing her bounds.

"_Protego!" _she heard Dawn shout.

_'Good. Good job Dawnie_,' she thought with relief. A shield spell should hold back the man until Willow could free herself or someone else could come to the girl's aid. Already her legs were free. Now time to work on her upper half.

"Stupid girl. The killing curse can't be stopped by that."

Willow's blood turned cold at the man's words and echoing laughter. She had spent enough time with Sirius to understand the spells of the Wizarding world to know that particular one.

"_Avada Kedavra!" _

Her eyes snapped open in time to see a blast of green light hurl towards Dawn. The girl's blue eyes shadowed with fear as she turned her back and tried to leap out of the way.

But she was too slow.

The spell struck the back of her right shoulder and she was thrown into the thick grass like a discarded doll.

Willow's control over her magic snapped at that moment – the moment when she saw Dawnie's lifeless form roll facedown onto the ground. In reaction, her binds snapped and she levitated up and harnessed the darkest spell she knew to throw at the man – a spell that would lock him into his mind where he would forever be shown his darkest fears come true and be treated to every torture device created by man.

She shook her hair out of her face – hair that was now black and weaved around her head like a nest of serpents – and looked for the murderer of Dawn Summers. Yet… her lips curled into an angry frown when she didn't see the man. Eyes the color of obsidian scanned the meadow and saw that Buffy, Anya, Sirius, Remus, and Luna were still unconscious or invisibly bound by spells while Kennedy faced two opponents and Luke faced one.

Then she saw him. The black robed murderer was sprawled on the ground and with one touch of her magic she knew he was dead. But how? Who killed him?

No matter. There were still three others who were just as guilty as the dead man. Soon they would join their friend.

Her veins coursed with hatred as she took one last pitying glance at Dawn. Poor Dawnie, who really had only lived life for barely three years before she was ripped away so casually. Dawn, who had been given to Buffy – and really – to all of them to protect and love. Even worse was the sympathy that suddenly sang a melancholy melody through her soul at the thought of Buffy losing the person she had once given her life for. Tears sprung to her eyes and Willow slumped to the ground with the weight that the mourning carried with it. It wrapped around her anger and buried it; thus neutralizing Willow's enact a bloody revenge on those final three.

With a sudden startling awareness she knew who she was and remembered how close she had come to letting her emotions control her magic – and how she finally was able to stop herself in time. She sniffled through her tears and pressed her hands to the ground in order to give back some of the magic she was going to use to kill the wizards and instead sent the magic to touch each of her friends and break their spells. As they gingerly began sitting up she stood and snapped her magic like a frisbee in the direction of the wizard Luke was fighting, who immediately fell to the ground in a deep sleep. Unfortunately, loud popping noises signaled that Kennedy's opponents apparated away before Willow could capture them.

Within a minute everyone was swarming her.

"Willow, that was great! Can't believe you got out of that body-bind, great job!" Luke congratulated her as he kept his wand focused on the captured wizard who was now snoring loudly.

"Well if anyone can break out of a spell, it's my Willow," said Sirius with pride.

"Hey did you guys see that? I totally knocked that one wizard out with a spell!" bubbled Anya in an excited voice.

"I did see that – how were you able to do that?" asked Remus. "Not to mention, thank you," he said in a voice full of emotion.

"Some wizards believe only wizards can use wands but it is true that the Normandy pixies are known to grant special powers during a time of a great need. Of course, it is unheard of for them to be all the way over here in America," Luna trailed off in a thoughtful voice.

"Is everyone alright?" Buffy called out as she made her way to the group from where she had been knocked down farther away.

"I think so," answered Kennedy promptly. "Wait - where's Dawn?"

"What? DAWN!" shouted Buffy as she began to frantically glance around.

"Buff-" Willow let out a choking sob as all eyes turned to her, just now realizing that it was more than rain drops that streaked her face. "Buffy, she's, she's, she's," Willow stuttered; unable to complete the sentence.

"Willow?" Buffy asked apprehensively; her voice taunt with worry. "Where's Dawn?"

She found herself unable to form words but finally answered in one shaky word as she pointed towards Dawn's body. "There."

Willow watched as everyone's faces swiveled in that direction and Buffy sprinted towards her sister. "Dawn?" she asked. "Dawnie?" she repeated in a childish voice. She rolled her sister over and touched her face. "Dawn. Dawn. Dawn. Dawn, wake up. Wake up, wake up, wake up," Buffy pleaded in a cracking voice.

"This wizard here, the dead one, hit her with the Killing Curse. It killed her on impact," Willow informed softly as Sirius helped her up.

"No, no it didn't," Buffy argued in a soft voice as she knelt and pulled Dawn into her lap and stroked her hair. "She's not dead, she can't be," she choked out in an emotional voice.

A half a dozen loud popping noises erupted into the meadow as their group whirled to face the new threat. "Wands up!" demanded Luke in a furious voice.

"Agent Drake with the Office of Special Services, reporting sir! The wolves told us something was amiss," answered a young man in a crisp voice. The Scoobies relaxed their alert stance at the answer; though Buffy had never even bothered to look up from her sister.

"Agent Matthews, Office of Special Services," Luke reported. "We were ambushed by three wizards and one witch who I believe were affiliated with the Unspeakables of the British Ministry of Magic. Two apparated but one fell in battle and one was captured. Take him to the morgue and the other to the holding cell at the office. Inform Secretary Asp immediately of what has occurred here."

"Yes sir!" Immediately the agents collected the bodies and melted into the woods – where Willow assumed the entrance to Columbia Village was.

Not that Willow cared what they did. All she cared about right now was her best friend and the body in her arms. It seemed all the magic and all the energy seeped out of her at the sight – it broke Willow to see someone so young and innocent killed. Of course, Willow had seen many dead bodies before – people she knew even. But not Dawn. Never Dawnie.

"Buffy," she whispered as she touched her friend's shoulder as she rocked back and forth while rain washed her silent tears away. "Buffy, I'm so sorry." She knelt down beside Buffy, laid her head on Buffy's shoulder, and wrapped her arms around the petite blond as sobs shook the girl.

"Not true, not true, not true," she repeated. "Can't be dead, no, not this time. I didn't save Dawn from a hell goddess only to for her to get kill by some lame ass wizard wearing a dress," she said in a tightly controlled voice.

"Buffy," said Luke in a quiet voice. Both Willow and Buffy's eyes looked at him sharply for his interruption. Behind him, they saw the others looking on in solemnity. "We must enter the village. The wolves can distract the Muggles for a while but the zoo is open and we'll be seen if we stay out here much longer," he explained hesitantly – as if he knew it was not smart to interrupt the grieving of two of the world's most powerful women.

"You," Buffy suddenly hissed and she gently laid Dawn down and stood up to point an accusing finger. "You were the only outsider to know we were going to be here. The only one who _possibly_ could have told those damn Unspeakable bastards that we were going to be here. It's your fault my sister is dead!" Buffy's voice raised into a murderous shriek as she catapulted herself at the bewildered and frightened wizard. With her weight and speed Luke fell to the ground with a sickening crunch as Buffy straddled him and began throwing her fists into his body.

"It's your fault! Your fault!" she yelled.

"Buff-" his words stopped at her tooth-breaking punch to his mouth. "I'm not the only one who knew! The prophecy said it would be someone –ugh!" he moaned as she took the wind out of him with a thrust to his solar plexus. "Someone you trusted! For all you know it was that damn vampire!"

"You know nothing!" she yelled as she hit him again in the chest.

"Question the prisoner then! I didn't do anything!" he wheezed out.

"Buffy!" Sirius said sharply as he grabbed her arm. "You're going to kill him!"

She threw him off her as easily as swatting a fly. "Good! See if I give a damn anymore!"

"_Petrificus Totalus," _Remus said in a solemn voice as Buffy froze and fell to the ground. "Buffy, I'm sorry to do that but it's better than you doing something you'll regret later," he explained to her.

Buffy only stared up at him with hostile eyes.

"We can speak to the prisoner?" Willow asked Luke warily as she smoothed Dawn's clothes tenderly.

"Yes, of course. I swear, I had nothing to do with this. As a government we would not even work with the Unspeakables – and I am surprised that they would willingly murder an innocent."

"Maybe they are not working for Fudge anymore," Sirius said grimly.

"Rogue Unspeakables?" Remus said in concern. "That would be troubling indeed."

"Let's go," Willow said in a hollow voice. "The sooner we speak to the Unspeakable the sooner we can get home and…" Willow didn't bother to finish the sentence – she could not imagine going through the motions of funeral arrangements for yet another loved one.

Sirius said several words in Latin and within minutes a stretcher formed of smooth wooden planks wrapped with colorful flowers materialized underneath Dawn. A sheet of sewn bright green leaves covered her body. "This way we can take her with us in dignity," Sirius said in a sad voice.

"And Buffy?" Luke asked nervously, with his black hair matted to his head with dark blood, blood dripping down a mouth that was missing several teeth, and with his right arm dangling uselessly at his side. "Will you be keeping her like this?"

Willow sighed as her lips set in a thin line. "Buffy?" she asked as she knelt down next to her motionless friend. "Listen, let's go and question the remaining bad guy before we do anything… hasty," she said as she glanced at Luke. "But," here her tone sharpened, "when we figure out who is responsible we will go after them. Okay?"

Buffy clenched her eyes shut and she seemed to ponder Willow's words. Finally she blinked twice in rapid succession. Willow nodded at Remus who reversed the spell with a wave of his wand. Slowly Buffy sat up and took several deep, cleansing breaths. Their eyes met and Willow's heart stopped at the sight of deep grief swirling within them.

"We question the dude, take Dawnie back, and then I get to really, really, _really_ hurt the bad guys?" she asked.

"Yes. And I'll be hurting them right there with ya," answered Willow solemnly with a nod of her head.

Buffy glanced at her sister and wiped away a stray tear before she hardened her face. "Good."

* * *

A/N:  
Review please!

I know this was a shorter chapter than normal but these things tend to ebb and flow as Musie chooses to dictate. I may have made some people unhappy … but if you're a smart cookie you'll understand very soon ;) Promise.


	56. No Doctor's Excuses Accepted

**No Doctor's Excuses Accepted**

* * *

The walk through the meadow and into the woods was silent and the air was thick with grief. Sirius and Remus took the honor of levitating Dawn's stretcher before them and everyone followed. Sirius' eyes were dull and his face seemed older than normal as he processed the death of his favorite pupil. Remus' eyes were cast to the ground and Willow could see that he was clutching Anya's hand tightly. Anya, who had been confronted with the realness of human death two years ago with Joyce, was sobbing quietly. Luke's face with tight with worry and his shoulders were hunched up in tension. Kennedy was frowning sadly as she watched Dawn's body float before them. The youngest of them all, Luna, appeared placid as normal but Willow saw silent tears streaming down her face.

As for Buffy… Buffy seemed to be reacting as she had to her mother's death. Willow tried to hold her hand to give her support but her friend had shied away. Now her face was a inscrutable mask of indifference as she marched silently.

When they were completely surrounded by trees Luke turned to them. "Instead of taking the common entrance into the village, we will take the private entrance into the Department of Magical Affairs, specifically the Office of Secret Services, in light of our, ah, current misfortunes," he added sadly with a glance in Dawn's direction.

With his wand he tapped the thick trunk of an ancient oak tree whose circumference had to be about twenty feet at least. A rectangular section of the wood pulled back several inches before sliding to the right, revealing a small room with smooth wooden walls. "In here, please," Luke said,

It was a tight fit – especially with Dawn – but the nine of them squeezed in before the door shut behind them. "Office of Secret Services," Luke said in an official voice.

"Identification and passcode," stated a stern female voice.

"Agent Luke Aldo Matthews. Passcode: gummy worms."

"Affirmed."

The tree hummed and suddenly they began descending rapidly. Willow grabbed Sirius' arm for balance because the speed made her feel unsteady. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her tight against him before placing a chaste kiss on her forehead. She took refuge in the comfort of his arms; so glad that they had made up the previous night.

"Department of Magical Affairs, Level B13, Office of Secret Services," the crisp female voice informed them as the door slid open again. Revealed before them was a open hall with dark hardwood floors and lighter wood paneled walls. A neatly groomed secretary with intricately braided cornrows was seated behind a L-shaped desk and was busy typing on a computer. Standing with an air of regality was an older woman with midnight hair pulled up in a bun that rivaled Minerva McGonagall in tightness. She was dressed in royal blue robes and wore rectangular spectacles that hid ice blue eyes that matched Luke's. Her height was equal to Buffy's and a sophisticated application of make-up made it difficult to determine her age but she appeared forty at most.

"Hello, welcome to the Office of Secret Services! Please register your wand with me," beamed the cheerful secretary who noticeably glanced at the other woman – likely trying to act impressive.

"That will be unnecessary, Angela," the older woman interrupted. "They are with me." She stepped forward and nodded briskly in their direction.

"Good morning. I am the Secretary of the Department of Magical Affairs, Katherine Asp. Agent Drake gave me a briefing on what occurred but I would like to hear it from you as well. If you would please follow me into the conference room?"

Buffy's shackles rose as she gave the woman an intimidating stare. "Listen, lady. I'm not interested in any sort of 'briefing'. Those bastards out there killed my sister and right now all I want to do is interrogate the prisoner – preferably using some shiny torture devices. That is, assuming, you people don't have your own version of the Geneva Convention?"

Willow raised an eyebrow at that; it appeared her history tutoring sessions in high school didn't go in vain after all.

"Ah, I am afraid I am ignorant of what the 'Geneva Convention' is – Buffy is it?" she peered over the rims of her glasses.

"Yeah," Buffy answered shortly. "So does that mean I get to beat the dude?"

Secretary Asp hesitated for a moment. "Unfortunately as soon as the man woke up he identified himself as Unspeakable Nigel Goyle with the British Ministry of Magic and cited his diplomatic immunity. I am sworn as a member of the International Confederation for Wizardry to notify the British Minister of Magic and refrain from questioning him until then."

"What?" Buffy shrieked as her hands immediately clenched into tight fists.

"But," Secretary Asp said in a crisp voice as she raised a hand, "the Confederation agreement on International Relations does not mention the act of having a Muggle question the envoy." A smile played around the corners of her lips and Buffy paused.

"Ms. Summers," she continued. "As the Secretary I am privy to a number of classified files and please believe me when I say I have the utmost respect for you and the work you have done. It is because of you that the world is in one piece and we are very appreciative of it – even if most of my fellow citizens are unaware of your existence. You see, I have no love for Minister Fudge and certainly no warm feelings towards British officials who enter my land illegally and then attack members of my country without provocation," her blue eyes flashed angrily before she took a deep breath. "In addition, with the latest information Luke obtained from my sister, I am willing to do what it takes to assist you in your endeavors – but no one else may know. Do you find this acceptable?"

Buffy sized up the older woman and extended her arm to shake hands. "That sounds good to me."

"Excellent." Secretary's Asp glanced at Dawn. "Now, before we enter into the chambers of Mr. Goyle would you like to set your sister to rest temporarily while we conduct business? We have a morgue where we are keeping the other man and I promise you her body will not be disturbed."

Buffy choked back a sob at the words 'her body' and nodded quickly. "Yes, that will work," she managed to say in a calm voice.

No one wanted to separate so they all followed the Secretary to the morgue where Dawn was placed in a private room. After lingering looks in the doorway they all turned to leave. They maneuvered through winding hallways that were devoid of personnel – likely the Secretary did not want any witnesses. Finally they reached a heavy oak door bordered with iron designs of dancing flames that actually moved.

"Open," ordered Secretary Asp. A creaking sound echoed as the door was raised straight up into the ceiling.

The room was similar to the rest of the level – dark hardwood floors and light wood paneled walls. The one difference was the robed man who was being held standing against the wall. What looked like tree branches encircled his legs, torso, arms, and neck and his eyes widened in fear at seeing them. He was heavy-set like a linebacker and had a face that looked like he had been hit too many times with a football.

Secretary Asp turned to them. "And now I recommend that myself and the wizards and witches of your party leave so we do not violate Confederation law."

Luna immediately stepped out, looking sick at the thought of what Buffy may end up doing. Sirius, of course, shook his head no.

"Considering that I'm already an outlaw sentenced to have the dementors suck out my soul, I don't think it'll really matter if I'm here or not," he said with dark humor.

Remus glanced at Buffy with concern. "I'm already a werewolf, which is bad enough for them. I'll stay."

The secretary sighed. "Fine then. Ms. Monroe, as a citizen of the America Department for Magical Affairs, you must come with me."

"What?" she asked appalled. "No way. I'm a potential slayer first. I want to stay – I want to help Buffy with beating this man in case her arm gets tired."

"Not likely," Buffy said darkly as she eyed Nigel Goyle – who shivered at the promise of a slow death in her eyes.

"Ms. Monroe, this is not a request," the secretary said coldly. "I am willing to do what I can to help but I will not risk my reputation for your desires."

"She stays," Buffy said in a tone that did not invite debate.

The secretary gritted her teeth. "Fine then. Do what you need to – but keep the man alive." She turned to walk out but hesitated. "Luke, I am commanding you to observe and to interfere if the man's life is in question." Apparently Katherine Asp did not trust the quiet appraisal that Buffy was making of her subject. Luke nodded and stood against the wall nearest the door as the secretary departed.

Buffy moved like a panther on the prowl towards Goyle as she took slow, deliberate steps. The man shrank back against the wall and he audibly gulped. She stilled when her face was only a foot from his and the wizard seemed to relax as she stood there quietly without moving. Then without notice her fist smashed into his nose so hard that only a messy pulp of flesh was left behind as he whined wordlessly. Two subsequent punches cracked and then broke several ribs on the left hand side.

Willow winced at the painful noise of the snapping bones but she remained watching. This man was, inadvertently, responsible for Dawnie's death. She wanted information as much as Buffy – and she didn't mind if it came as a result of pain either. It appeared that Sirius, Remus, Anya, and Kennedy felt the same.

"Who was it that killed my sister?" Buffy asked coldly.

"I don't have to tell you nothing, you stupid Muggle bitch," spat Goyle; blood flying onto Buffy's cheek.

"Wrong. Fucking. Answer," Buffy swore as she wiped the blood away – and truth be told Willow agreed that a little swearing was fitting considering the circumstances. She gave him a hard kick to his stomach and the wizard groaned.

"Do whatever you want – I won't tell you anything, Nothing you do could be worst than the First," he said with gritted teeth.

"Working for the First, huh?" the man's eyes widened at his lapse and he swore softly. "Thought you were Mr. Unspeakable. What happened? Government pay not good enough for your dress wearing self?"

"This is a robe, you stupid slag!" he grunted harshly.

Buffy cocked her head to the side and made a disapproving noise. "You're not too smart, are ya? See, if you're tied up to a wall and a have a really strong girl punching you it is probably not a good idea to argue with her." She thrust her heel of her hand against his wrist and smiled at the cracking noise it made. "Now what are you wearing?"

"A dress!" he gasped in pain.

"Goody. You're learning. Now, who killed my sister?"

"Once they examine him that stupid bint of a secretary will know. He's a citizen here now – Hugh Rosier," he stated.

"Rosier?" Sirius said sharply. "Moony, wasn't he a Death Eater?"

"Whole family was in with Voldemort," Remus confirmed with a suspicious purse of his lips.

"Not to mention," Sirius said as he raised his wand. "Our reports said that Nigel Goyle was also a Death Eater." Once Sirius was close enough he jabbed his wand against Goyle's temple. "What's Voldemort doing here?" he asked suspiciously.

Goyle let out a rumble of laughter. "Voldemort is dead, you idiot. I serve a greater lord now."

"The First?" Buffy scoffed. "Some lame-o who has to dress up like other people because he doesn't even have his own body? Yeah, sounds like a really cool master," she taunted.

"Not to mention he has to send out people to do his dirty work since he's incorporeal – doesn't sound like he's as all powerful as he claims," Sirius goaded.

Goyle's eyes bulged in anger as he licked his lips – and licked away the blood that was drizzling down his nose in the process. "You Muggles and Blood Traitors will find out just how powerful the First is! Soon with our help he will rise and so will we!"

"Yeah right," Buffy said scornfully. "Once he's done he'll leave you out to rot."

"No," Goyle argued. "Lucius promised us-" he froze as he realized what he had said and looked around in fear at the sudden interest the group had in his statement. "I mean, our _luscious_ master promised us we would be powerful," he finished lamely.

Buffy cracked her first smile. "Lucius, huh?"

"I met a man named Lucius in Hogsmeade," Willow informed. "He did have some bad vibes although it's hard to believe he works for the First."

"Lucius Malfoy is the worst of the worst," Sirius said darkly. "He was one of Voldemort's top men but the sniveling coward begged the Ministry to believe he had been forced to do things because of a curse. Of course, to sweeten the deal he wielded his money and influence considerably."

"Which begs the question – why would Lucius turn from Voldemort to the First?" Remus mused.

"And this is the part where you tell us a little story," Buffy said with false cheer as she cracked her knuckles.

Nigel Goyle began coughing and Buffy raised an amused eyebrow. "Sorry evil dude. I really don't accept doctor's excuses to get out of torture."

The man said nothing but his eyes bulged out of his sockets in fear and sweat trickled down his forehead as he continued coughing.

"Um, Buffy, I think he's choking," Willow said hesitatingly.

"What?" she shouted. "This bastard isn't going to die on me! Luke, release these tree things and let him out!"

Luke responded with a nod and a spell that caused the man to fall down, his coughs turning into a hiss of air as he struggled to breath. Buffy yanked up the man, which appeared very impressive given that he had a foot and a half on her, and began smacking him hard on the back. When it didn't have the intended reaction and the man became silent she turned to her friends.

"He's still choking! Do something magical!" she shouted as she sat the man on the floor but kept him sitting up.

"_Aero Obduco_," Sirius incanted and a bright blue light shot into Goyle's throat. "It's an anti-choking spell guaranteed to expel the foreign object," he explained.

"It's not working!" Buffy yelled in frustration.

"It should work!" Sirius argued. He rushed over there and opened up Goyle's mouth. "_Lumos_," he said as the tip of his wand flared like a flashlight and he stuck it near the opening of the mouth. "Moony, you know healing better than I. Come here and look at this. There's something pink, almost fleshy looking at the back of his throat."

Remus conjured two wooden tongue depressor; one to hold the tongue down and the other two poke tentatively at the mass in the throat. "It's – no it can't be," Remus said in shock.

"What?" Buffy asked urgently.

"It looks like it's his tonsils – they've been enlarged. Wait a moment. _Infinite Incantem_," he spoke. "There, there, see, they are shrinking now," he murmured. "_Recipero_!" he said as he tapped the man's chest with his wand.

"Dammit," Remus swore under his breath.

"Dead?" Buffy asked.

Remus looked her in the eye and nodded. "Yes, we were not quick enough, I am afraid."

Buffy nodded in return; her face still void of emotion. "So you're telling me something – or someone – enlarged this dude's tonsils and killed him before we could get more information on this Lucius dude and why my sister was killed?" she asked softly and her words signaled the calm before the storm.

"Yes, Buffy," Remus answered grimly.

Buffy nodded her head jerkily as she stood up. "Sure. Of course. Of course that would happen." Then she let out a feral scream as she performed a round-house kick against the wall and began assailing the branches that had held Goyle prisoner. One by one she ripped each branch out and threw it against the opposite wall; all the while screaming.

The others watched her in silence; slightly fearful of what it meant to possibly have an unbalanced slayer.

When Buffy was finished her chest was heaving as she took deep, quick breaths and turned to them. "Let's go."

"Um, Buffy?"

Buffy gave Luke a murderous look. "What?" she snarled; her fingers curling into claws.

"The portkey we set up will not be ready until four p.m. – that's five hours from now," he informed her. Willow had to admire that the man did not have any fear in his voice with Buffy glaring at him like that. Either he was very brave or very stupid.

"We are going home," Buffy told him in a frosty voice. "Now."

"And I would like to do that for you, please believe me. I can contact the Office of Transportation to get a new one set up but it may take at least an hour to do so. The spells are rather complicated and I'm afraid there are always hoops to jump through."

"Sirius?" Buffy asked.

"Yes?"

"Can you apparate us home?"

"I'm sorry, we are too far away. I'm liable to splinch us if we do. Portkey will be the fastest way to travel," he informed her.

The door creaked open as it raised upwards and Secretary Katherine Asp viewed the scene with a wary eye. "Luke?"

"Nigel Goyle died from choking – his tonsils became inflamed. Ms. Summers would like to go home as soon as possible. Can we arrange something with OT – the Office of Transportation?" Luke reported.

She wet her lips. "Yes, that can be done. And how did his tonsils become inflamed?" she raised a brow in disbelief.

"That's what I want to know," Buffy said with crossed arms.

"Luke, send the body to the morgue and have Agent Sanders inspect the body and give us a cause of death – if it was a self-inflicted curse or a curse that was triggered at the mention of a key name or statement."

"Yes, Ma'am." Luke whirled out of the room in a flash of black robes.

"I will speak with OT and tell them we need a portkey, Expect it to take an hour. Until then you are welcome to wait here or explore the Village."

"Do you have something to slay?" Buffy asked with a frown. "I could really use a good slaying. Any vampires in these parts?"

"I'm afraid there's only one group – a family of sorts – farther up in Washington. But their presence frightens off the others that you are used to dealing with. Therefore, there is not anything good to slay in this area," Secretary Asp informed.

"You have a group of vampires that is powerful enough to scare off others? Sounds like a game plan to me. Tell me where to go," Buffy said, a spark of her old self flashing in her eyes.

"That won't be possible, Buffy. They are, surprisingly, good vampires. However, there is a training room you could use to vent out your frustrations," she suggested.

"Sounds good to me," Buffy sighed. "What about you guys?" she asked the others.

"I can go with you," Willow offered.

Buffy bit her lip. "No, that's – that's fine, Will. I want to be alone right now, okay?"

"Sure," Willow said quickly; although she really was afraid to leave Buffy right now.

"We had already been planning on heading to Gringotts so I could get money out of my numbered account and then head to the Apothecary, so I guess I'll still go there," Sirius said with a shrug.

"True. We need healing supplies for the little wannabe slayers. I will go with Sirius since I am very good with money and getting good deals," Anya stated; although her voice was devoid of the usual happiness she got when speaking about money.

"I'll go with both of you," Remus said.

"Me too," Willow said.

Kennedy glanced towards the door. "I'll head out with Luna. Maybe we'll go see her uncle or something," she shrugged.

"Okay, see you guys I one hour," Buffy spoke in a dull voice as she marched out of the room.

* * *

Once Lucius found a moment to himself he whispered, "It went better than I expected, my master."

The First materialized without a noise; this time in the form of his father Abraxas Malfoy. "Really?" he asked with a curling sneer.

"Yes. We had wanted to collect Sirius Black in order to draw the Dark One out but instead Rosier actually killed the slayer's sister. At first I was upset that he deviated from the plan but who would have guessed it would bear such delicious fruits? I felt the power of the Dark One and only good can come of her dipping into the reservoir of dark magic. More importantly, the slayer is losing it." Lucius let out a low chuckle as he smiled at his success.

"Yet you did not manage to prove yourself to them as you had wanted," the First said slyly as he slowly circled Lucius.

"No, but there is time for that," Lucius said confidently.

"And Rosier was killed and Goyle captured – then killed by you after he spilled unnecessary information."

"Yes," Lucius reluctantly admitted. He was still unsure of how Rosier died – he didn't think Willow had done it – and he was slightly worried about his name being told to the slayer and her friends.

"And you really think everything went well?" the First asked with a raised brow and a voice full of disdain that made Lucius fight to keep from shivering – it sounded just like his father did before he was punished as a child.

Lucius faltered for a moment. "Yes. After all, at least the slayer's sister is dead."

"Really?" his voice dripped with disbelief.

"Then tell me, Lucius Malfoy, _why am I unable to take on the form of Dawn Summers?"_ snarled the First after a significant pause.

* * *

A/N:

I am evil, I know *grins maniacally* But I supplied a quick update at least! Review please – I really want to know your thoughts!

~And thank you to those of you who reviewed the previous chapter! And way to go for you smarties who guessed the truth, or at least part of it!

Oh, yeah, and that was a little mention of the Twilight vampires *snickers* Since they're in the same area I just *had* to do it. Doubt anything will come of it though *shrugs* …Unless someone has a funny/fun idea ;)


	57. A Wand Via the MAX Line

**A Wand Via the MAX Line**

The first thing Dawn Summers noticed was that she was she was chilled to her bones and every part of her felt wet like she had just walked through the rain. But then again, hadn't it been raining? It seemed to take forever but slowly her eyelids fluttered open long enough to realize that she was laying down in the dark. Why was it dark? Her heart jumped in her chest as she fearfully tried to figure out where she was. No, wait, it was dark because of a blanket over her head… A blanket of green leaves? That was weird, why would she be in a lying in a pile of green leaves?

Green.

A starling flash of green light assailed her memory followed by white-hot phantom pain in her upper-right back. Her mouth opened to release a moan but no sound came out. Dawn's throat felt like rough sandpaper and dryer than Death Valley.

Death. The Killing Curse. That's what that wizard had said… Was she dead? Her stomach filled with acidic fire at the thought. The last thing she remembered was the man aiming the 'Killing Curse' at her and being hit. Obviously she must be dead…

A grim thought ran through her mind - maybe she would finally understand what Buffy had gone through. Except, if this was heaven where was the singing and hot angel guys and anchovy pizza? Why would someone stick her in a leaf pile? That was kinda lame.

Well, Dawn did remember loving jumping in leaf piles as a kid when they visited grandma… Of course, those memories were fake so who knew what she really loved – she wasn't quite human.

Maybe not-quite-humans didn't go to Heaven? What if they were just stuck in a never ending leaf pile for all time?

_'Stop being stupid, Dawn,'_ she chided herself. She was getting herself worked up. Everything was fine. It had to be fine.

She started to push herself up until she realized her body felt like dead weight. _No, not dead, dammit!' _Okay, her body felt heavy; heavy like some Mafia hit man had weighted her down and tossed her in the river. Weird, but not necessarily bad. She tried moving her fingers and found out she could form a fist – which is always good. After all, thanks to Buffy Dawn knew how to throw a good punch… Of course, it would help to move her arms as well.

After a long time of intense concentration Dawn was finally able to push the leaves off of her. As it fell to the floor she gingerly sat up and surveyed the room. The room was unlit but a door in front of her had a small window at the top that let in a stream of light. The room around her was immaculate with a shining walnut colored floor and a long counter that held various metal objects that glinted sharply in the light.

Whoa. Metal objects? Was she in a torture chamber? Did she get captured again? This was not good. She had to get out and find Buffy. Dawn swung her legs over the table and jumped down – except when she landed on her weak legs she fell into a heap onto the floor. Inspecting the table that she had been placed on Dawn saw she had been laying on a beautiful wood-crafted stretcher that had bright flowers woven into it. Upon closer inspection she saw that they were lilies – her favorite. Ooookay, so why did her captors make her a pretty bed with her favorite flowers?

After more time spent doing stretches and massaging her legs, Dawn shakily stood up. She felt more or less fine, except for where the curse had hit her – that side of her back felt like it was burning. She peered out the window in the door and saw another room similar to hers except it was larger and had one body covered underneath a sheet. Eww. Dead bodies. Vaguely thinking of those creeps who wanted to create a Cordelia Zombie during Buffy's junior year, she wondered if maybe she was in Frankenstein's laboratory.

Seeing that the coast was clear, Dawn opened the door and softly stepped into the larger room. From there she crept to another door and snuck out when she saw no one in the hallway – but before she left she took a wicked looking pair of sharp scissors. After all, who knew what she was going to find? Dawn tried to be the Girl Scout of Slaying and be prepared for anything.

The hallway she was in was long and odd because it was completely made of wood – the ceiling, walls, and floor. Maybe she was inside a tree? Or in the home of a mass murdering woodpecker?

Okay, probably not the last one. Maybe that spell had hit her harder than she had realized.

She walked through the hallways for maybe ten minutes until she found an opening into an enormous room that – with the woman at a desk and several chairs – resembled a waiting room. This meant she was right next to the exit!

But first she had to escape the secretary's notice. Dawn briefly considered asking the cornrowed woman where she was but in her life talking to strangers often ended in bloodshed. Thus, she needed another way.

Seeing that the woman was concentrating on typing something into a computer, Dawn wondered if there was some way to distract her. Maybe if the computer broke the woman would run for assistance? Except how could she secretly break it? If only she had a wand!

Dawn wondered… Sirius and Remus had explained accidental magic to her and how she had done it before. Maybe she could do it again? All a wand did was focus a person's magic… Dawn thought if she concentrated enough she could do it. So tucked behind a potted plant next the doorway leading into the hallway, Dawn stared at the computer.

_'Break! Explode! Just do something!'_ she thought. But nothing. She felt a stab of anger at once again being 'poor little Dawnie' captured and locked up – couldn't she get anything right?

"Sweet Mab! What the hell?" shouted the secretary. Dawn glanced at the woman and saw that the computer was on fire. The woman was putting it out using a water spell and ranting the whole while. "Oh, _nooo_ Angela, we've got all the bugs worked out. We _promise_ this modified computer will be resistant to _all_ the magic at the Department and will work. This is the new wave of the _future_, Angela. You'll be a _pioneer_."

She kicked her desk furiously. "Bugs worked out my ass! Stupid idiots, there's a reason why we avoid Muggle technology," she ranted under her breath as her heels click-clacked towards a door on the other side.

Dawn silently cheered and ran for the exit as soon as the secretary was out of sight. She saw two doors, one oval-shaped and one rectangular. Grasping the handle of the oval-shaped one she stepped into a small wooden room that made Dawn think of an elevator.

"Destination, please," asked a crisp female voice from above.

"Um." Dawn didn't know where this could take her. "Sunnydale?"

"I'm sorry, that location is not in my system. Destination, please?"

Figuring she was in the same area that they had been headed to she asked to go to Luna's uncle's shop. "Lovegood's Wand Emporium please!"

"Destination noted. Please hold on."

"Um, hold on to what?" Then Dawn saw that a carved bark handle lined the walls of the room. She grabbed on just in time – because suddenly she was thrown against the wall as the room hurtled to the side. "What_ is_ this thing?" she cried out, halfway terrified.

"You are using the Magical Automatic eXpress, often referred to as the MAX line. The MAX line runs throughout Columbia Village and the surrounding Wizarding locations in order to properly disguise the travels of wizards and to assist guests in avoiding the precipitation."

The room suddenly halted and Dawn lost her grip before sliding to the other side of the room. Then it shot upwards and she found her face plastered against the floor. Once the MAX halted she slowly got up; afraid that she was going to get sick all over the place.

"Journey complete. Welcome to Lovegood's Wand Emporium," the automatic voice informed as the door opened to the outside world. Facing her was a crooked three story cylinder home made of stone and resembling something out of the Middle Ages. It was completely covered with ivy and on the front hung out a wooden sign that said 'Lovegood's Wand Emporium'. Dawn sprinted through the rain – which was falling considerably harder than earlier – and stopped to catch her breath outside the door. She hesitated for a moment as she wondered where everyone else would be. Were they looking for her? Were they worried?

Well, years of getting kidnapped taught Dawn that they probably were very worried and definitely looking right now.

She pushed open the door and was greeted a noise that sounded like an Australian wind instrument she had seen on TV once – the didgeridoo. Definitely a strange kind of doorbell but considering this dude was related to Luna she was not surprised. The room was carpeted with thick grass that cushioned her feet and the walls were covered with ivy. Numerous oak cabinets lined the walls, even stretching up to the ceiling, and at the front of the shop was a dark oak counter and an ancient cash register.

As Dawn took all this in with wide eyes she felt herself step on something and heard a high-pitched squeal. Jumping backwards she saw a brown and fuzzy creature that made her think of a baby bear. It was covered with soft brown fur, had wide chocolate eyes that gazed at her with fear, and… thumbs? Yup, upon a second look the creature had thumbs and fingers and toes. So not a bear… But then what?

A hearty roar that erupted from a beaded doorway behind the cash register answered her question. The creature was easily seven feet tall with wide shoulders and long teeth that flashed as it roared. It too was covered in hair and also had human-like phalanges. The only thing Dawn could surmise was that she had just walked into Bigfoot's lair and stepped on his kid.

She gasped and walked backwards to the door as the Bigfoot vaulted over the counter and stood protectively over its Mini-Me. Dawn threw up her arms in desperation. "Please don't hurt me! I'm so sorry I stepped on your kid! I was just coming to get a wand from Mr. Lovegood 'cause see, I'm friends with his neice Luna and we had an arrangement to come by today-" Dawn stopped because she realized she was babbling and that the Bigfoot was looking at her intelligently – like it understood everything she was saying.

"Um, is Mr. Lovegood here?" Dawn tentatively asked.

The Bigfoot nodded, scooped up the child, and made some strange noises that reminded Dawn of Chewbacca from Star Wars before walking back behind the curtain. Dawn just stood there extremely confused and felt relieved when a tall and well-built man with thick white blond hair that fell to his shoulders walked into the room. He wore a a flannel shirt, frayed jeans, and a sunny smile.

"So _you're_ Dawn! Excellent!" he boomed in a British accent. "I was wondering when you all would arrive. Come in, come in my dear!" he urged her when he noticed she was still standing in the doorway. He eyed her wet clothes and clucked disapprovingly. "You must be freezing! Allow me to fix that," he said as he waved his wand and suddenly Dawn was dry again.

"I was just finishing up some treacle tarts for you all – they are Luna's favorite and I am sure she misses them. They are quite hard to find in America." With a wave of his wand several chairs and a oak coffee table popped into the middle of the room as he levitated in a tea tray and another tray complete with tarts.

"I'm terribly sorry if my wife Brumhilda frightened you – she felt absolutly horrified that she had scared one of Luna's friends. We are consistenly telling little Balthilda not to play out in the common area of the store. Her brother Bach was supposed to be watching her but apparently he ran off with friends to hunt in the woods. Of course, kids will be kids," he shrugged and smiled.

She was at a loss for words. Luna had not mentioned this. Of course, Luna's definition of normal was not compatible with anyone else's.

Dawn just smiled and shrugged her shoulders. "Kids will be kids," she agreed half-heartedly. "Um, Mr. Lovegood-"

"Bartholomaus, please. After all, Luna speaks so highly of you," he smiled kindly.

Dawn nodded and wished she could have just stuck to Lovegood. "Bartholomaus," she sounded out. "I was just wondering if Luna had stopped by yet?"

"No, not yet. Have you gotten lost? The Village can be rather confusing for first timers," he asked in a concerned tone.

"Kinda," Dawn admitted. She wasn't sure if she should be blabbing her waking up in a cold dark room to anyone just yet.

"No matter! We can wait for her here. Actually," he sat up with a wide grin, "we may as well get started."

"Get started?"

"In finding your wand! Yes, yes. Oh, I always enjoy the look on someone's face when they find their match." Bartholomaus began rummaging through one of the cabinets and brought out a dozen wooden boxes that he placed onto the coffee table.

Dawn looked stricken at the prospect of finally getting a wand. "What do I do?" she asked.

"Just give them a flick my dear!" he rumbled in a deep, eager voice.

Reaching for a light colored one she gave it a swift flick and the other boxes all flew away. "Ouch," she muttered as she set the wand down and rubbed her shoulder.

"Looks like that one won't do." Bartholomaus spotting her massaging her shoulder and frowned. "Are you alright my dear?"

"Fine," Dawn grimaced. "Just think I may have put too much oomph in that one."

"Are you injured? If you like I could look at it and do a healing spell," he offered graciously.

"Um, sure," Dawn shrugged – and immediately regretted it. Pulling off her heavy sweatshirt she was left in a green tank top and she turned her back to him. When he gasped loudly Dawn whirled around.

"What?" she asked in alarm.

"My dear," he began in a soft voice. "Did someone curse you?"

"Um kinda, I think. Why?"

"There is a strangely shaped wound and I can feel the dark magic that created it. It's a bit odd, but your wound is shaped like a bolt of lightning." His wand touched it briefly. "I'm afraid there is nothing I can do to heal it – it requires far more talent than I."

Dawn bit her lip. A lightning shaped scar? Wasn't that what Harry had on his forehead? She had never asked him how he got it – in her life people tended to have scars – but now she was wondering if it was a result of dark magic too.

Bartholomaus sudden jumped to his feet. "One moment!" he called as he hurriedly climbed a ladder on wheels and rolled over to high cabinet. "No, no, no, yes!" he murmured in satisfaction. Climbing down, he set a box triumphantly down in front of her. "Try this one," he said in a confident voice.

Dawn picked it up slowly, afraid that she was going to blow something up again, and gave it a gentle wave. It lit with a blinding white light and a gentle breeze rolled through the air. "Whoa," she said in a dreamy voice.

"That, Ms. Summers, is your wand. Wood taken from a sequoia tree,11 ½ inches, pliable, with a phoenix feather at its core. A very unusual wand, Ms. Summers," Bartholomaus mused.

Dawn, who was still staring at her wand in amazement – it just felt so _right_ in her hand – asked, "How so?"

"I was moved to make this wand a little less than three years ago due to a peculiar dream. The sequoias are the oldest trees in California and even in many parts of the world. This wood was given by a 2,500 year old tree the Muggles named 'General Sherman' in Sequoia National Park. You see, the tree kindly dropped a small branch when I discussed my dream. And the phoenix feather mysteriously appeared on my work table the next day." He gave her a piercing look. "Quite peculiar."

"Peculiar, that's me," she said with a sheepish smile. The story behind the wand was a bit unsettling, considering she had just been 'born' in the last three years but Dawn didn't want to worry about that right now. Right now she had her wand and that was all that mattered.

"Thank you so much," she added with a wide smile. "I can't believe I finally have my own wand. The only problem is," she gnawed her lip nervously; "I don't have any money with me right now. But as soon as I find my sister-"

He waved a hand carelessly. "Think nothing of it, Ms. Summers. I am convinced that wand was made for you. It is yours and I have only been its keeper. Please take it."

"Thank you," she said gratefully.

The door creaked open and Bartholomaus stood up. "There you are! Welcome Luna!" he bellowed with joy.

"Uncle Bartholomaus!" Luna ran to him and he picked her up and spun her around in a tight embrace.

"And just how is my favorite niece?"

Luna's lip quivered and Dawn saw Kennedy stepped into the store behind Luna. "Oh uncle, the most tragic event took place! Dawn, the girl I told you about, who had become my first friend, was killed in battle! It just happened and it was so terrible," she said between choking back sobs.

"Luna?" Dawn asked in confusion. "I'm right here."

Pale blue eyes examined her as her face took on an aghast expression. "Dawn?"

Dawn grinned. "Yeah, I'm definitely alive. Way to leave me in some creepy room though, or was I taken hostage by some dudes?"

Luna didn't bother to answer and instead catapulted herself at Dawn; causing both girls to fall into the large easy chair behind them as Luna held Dawn in a tight embrace.

A/N:

With such cliffhangers I try to get out chapters quickly, Dearest Readers – and nice reviews mean they come out quicker! ;)

Thank you to everyone who has been reviewing and giving your ideas! They definitely give me the energy to write! Please let me know what you think of this chapter! Hopefully you enjoyed seeing things through Dawnie's eyes :)

*The MAX light rail system is the form of public transportation in Portland – I like playing with the name :)


	58. Score Another One for the Yanks

**Score Another One for the Yanks**

Buffy had spent less than half an hour in the Office of Secret Services training room before her 'spidey sense' kicked in. For a while she ignored the light tingling feeling in her brain and instead focused on punching the gym bag as hard as possible. She didn't want to think right now; she didn't want to feel. All she wanted to do was hurt something.

She let out a warrior yell as she performed a complicated flip and side kick at the dummy and then just stood there panting. That weird sensation just wouldn't leave her alone and it made her think something was happening – but what? Besides Dawn's… Buffy shoved that thought out of her head. Besides the earlier _event_ – she corrected herself – something felt _off_ about today. She didn't understand what it was but there was something… something that she was missing.

And something told her it had to do with Dawn.

A flash of burning grief forced her eyes to moisten but she blinked back the tears. She was the Slayer and no matter what had happened today she had the world depending on her.

Again.

So it was because of her 'spidey sense' Buffy decided to exit the training room and go to the morgue. The halls were busier now and she passed almost a dozen men and women wearing black robes with a red crest on the left-hand side that bore the initials 'OSS' in old-fashioned script. Luckily, no one approached her and Buffy soon found herself in the morgue alone. She hesitated outside the door where Dawn was; unsure if she was making the right choice and if she wanted to see her little sister cold and pale.

But Buffy pushed open the heavy door anyway. Her eyes took in the blanket of leaves on the ground and the bare stretcher before she fell to knees with a shaky breath. Dawn. Was. Gone.

Fire bubbled in her belly and Buffy swore if she opened her mouth flames would spew like a dragon's.

Someone had stolen her sister.

And that someone was going to pay.

Secretary Asp had offered to have the MAX line take Willow, Sirius, Anya, and Remus to Gringotts but instead they decided to take the opportunity to walk through the village. Quite honestly, after the events of today Willow figured that they all needed some fresh air. In a way Columbia Village reminded her of Hogsmeade due to the fact that several dozen witches and wizards were milling around in robes of varying colors. However it was much larger – perhaps because it was the West Coast capital of the Department of Magical Affairs – and the buildings seemed more rustic and in tune with nature. The buildings made Willow think of she was playing The Oregon Trail game because they had a very frontier feeling – almost all were constructed with wood and several shops were actual log cabins.

The one building that stuck out from all of these was clearly Gringotts. It reminded her of a smaller scaled version of the Notre Dame Cathedral with gothic architecture and intimidating gargoyles that leered over the edge of the roof. The double doors were guarded by what Willow presumed was a goblin – he wore a uniform of scarlet and gold with puffy sleeves and had a pointed face with meticulously kept facial hair. He inspected them closely as they walked by, and in particular kept his focus on Willow and Sirius – she wondered if their glamours were strong enough to keep from being recognized.

As they walked to a second pair of doors Willow read an engraved sigh that was tacked firmly next to the entrance. It read:

_Enter, stranger, but take heed  
Of what awaits the sin of greed,  
For those who take, but do not earn,  
Must pay most dearly in their turn.  
So if you seek beneath our floors  
A treasure that was never yours,  
Thief, you have been warned, beware  
Of finding more than treasure there. _

"Wow, they really mean business, don't they?" Willow whispered.

"You have no idea," Sirius replied. "Gringotts is the best guarded place in the world. Each branch has hundreds of goblins working there, in addition to wizards." Sirius pulled opened the door and motioned for Willow and the others to enter.

Once again, Willow found her breath taken away. They were in a giant hall with dozens of entrances each guarded by fierce looking goblins. On the one side a long counter ran the length of the room and had dozens of goblins speaking to customers or counting gold.

"Welcome to Gringotts, how may we be of service?" a prim and deep-voiced goblin asked them. Pointed ears reached past tufts of grey hair and his eyes were beady and black. Willow fought not to shrink back at the sight of him – something about the goblins just sort of freaked her out.

"Good afternoon. I'm here to retrieve funds from a vault locate in Gringott's London location," answered Sirius.

The goblin gave him a suspicious look. "Very well. I am Zarg and will be handling your transaction. Please follow me to our international transaction room." Zarg spun around and began leading them through a drafty hallway with rich marble floors and walls that were lit by hanging candelabras. Eventually they were led to a room with the largest fireplace that Willow had ever seen, dark wood-paneled walls, and a lush forest green carpet. High-backed red cushioned velvet chairs were seated in a semi-circle around the fireplace and Zarg motioned for them to sit.

"Please have a seat. Through this special fireplace I can connect to any Gringotts bank and that is how I will be retrieving your funds. I require the vault number and your identification number, as well as your intended withdrawal amount," Zarg informed them.

"Vault number 711 and my identification number is 747487-25225. I'd like to take out two-hundred Galleons today," Sirius responded as he took a seat. Zarg nodded and began rummaging through a small cabinet next to the fireplace.

"This place is so cool," Willow gushed in a quiet voice; amazed by the building and the magic it housed. Sirius just grinned at her – she knew it amused him how she could get excited so easily about things in the Wizarding world. Then again, he knew how often she got amused when a Muggle device confused or entertained him.

"You should see the one in London – it's made of white marble with Romanesque columns," Anya mentioned.

"You've been there?" asked Remus.

Anya rolled her eyes. "Of course. I had an account back when I was a witch."

"What happened to it?" asked Willow.

"Well, I became a demon," Anya shrugged. "Kinda makes things null and void."

"You are a demon?" asked an alarmed Zarg who had clearly been listening in. His spine was straight and his ears were perked as he stared at Anya.

"No," she scowled. "Not anymore. Now I'm just a normal human again." Although, after seeing Anya use Remus' wand, Willow wasn't so sure that Anya was 'normal' anymore. Well, actually the word 'normal' never came up when she thought of Anya.

Zarg gazed at Anya carefully. "Did you ever close your account?"

She opened her mouth to speak but then shut it. "Um, no. When D'Hoffryn gave me the power of the Wish he told me not to return to my old life. I mean, sure I ended up again at Hogwarts a couple of times for some good curses and some Slytherin loving but I've avoided the Wizarding world for most of my thousand years."

"Hmm," replied the goblin as he returned to a scroll that was longer than he was tall.

Anya's lips pursed as she took in the goblin's response. "Wait a second, are you telling me that accounts aren't closed when someone becomes a demon?"

Zarg avoided making eye contact and Willow leaned forward in interest – this was getting good.

"Such an occurrence would be so uncommon that none of the top management officials would have considered such a loop hole. As it stands vaults remain in the name of the person until death and then they move to the next family member or person directed by a will."

Anya clapped her hands together and her eyes brightened. "Wait, so are you saying I still have my money?"

"If you know your vault number and can prove your identity, then yes," answered Zarg, who looked like he would have preferred eating glass over giving away money that could have stayed at the bank.

"Do you know it?" asked Remus.

"By goddess, I haven't thought of that in a thousand years," Anya said with a sad sigh. "I'm not sure."

"But I thought demons had perfect memories," Sirius asked.

"Demons, yes. But human memories fade over time – except for the very strong ones," answered Anya.

"Well, you said you graduated in 990 so likely it was opened around that time," mused Remus. "Therefore it would be an old vault. If the Black-" here Sirius shot him a dirty look. "Er, if our friend's vault is number 711 and that family is old, yours would have to be an even higher number."

"If you do not mind, I have business to conduct," interrupted Zarg. He threw in glittery yellow dust – Willow wondered if maybe it was actually gold – and announced, "Gringotts, Diagon Alley branch!" in a loud voice.

The flames jumped ten feet – the fireplace was very large after all – and flashed to green. After a minute of waiting a goblin's head peered from the other side of the fire – and Willow imagined it was like doing a video conference on a large screen TV.

"Griphook here, who am I speaking with?" asked a goblin with jet-black hair and a hooked nose.

"Zarg from Columbia Village branch. Account holder number 747487-25225 would like to retrieve two-hundred Galleons from his vault, number 711."

"Information noted. I will verify this and transfer the funds," Griphook said with a nod. He vanished from the fire yet the green flames continued to burn.

"Make yourselves at home; Griphook should be back shortly," Zarg said before he sat in a chair in the corner.

Meanwhile, Remus, Willow, and Sirius threw out possible vault numbers at Anya.

"845?"

"909?"

"1,025?"

"No, no, and no," Anya frowned. "Damn it all, how I am ever going to think of this? To think that there is money out there – my money – all alone and waiting for me," she pouted and Remus comfortingly rubbed her shoulders.

Ten minutes later Griphook appeared in the fireplace and pushed forward two sacks of coins. "Two-hundred Galleons from Vault 711," he informed before he left and the flames returned to their normal orange tint.

Sirius gladly picked up the sacks, shrunk them, and deposited them into his coat pocket. "Looks like we're off to the Apothecary."

"Oh, and don't forget we have to pick up some Chocolate Frogs for Xander and Dawn…" Willow trailed off as she realized what she was saying.

Sirius pulled her into a one-armed hug and kissed her temple. "I'll get a thousand and one Chocolate Frogs for her," he whispered in a sad voice. Willow gave him a grateful smile and brushed her lips against his.

"Oh! A thousand and one! Mr. Zarg!" Anya called out gleefully. "I remember my account number!"

After Zarg completed Anya's transaction with Griphook she became the proud owner of five Galleons, ten knuts, and one sickle. Of course, Anya quickly pointed out that with one thousand years of interest she was owed a great deal more. That led to an interesting debate between her, Zarg, and Griphook, but in the end Anya's vault increased dramatically.

"I'm a millionaire!" Anya squealed as she jumped up and down. She grabbed Remus and pulled him into a deep kiss before resuming her dance of newly discovered wealth.

"That's great, Anya," Willow congratulated her. "But we should really get going. Dawn, remember?"

"Oh, yes," Anya's face fell. "Well, I will buy Dawn the best funeral ever. I will even hire women to dress in black to mourn, cry, scream, wail, and throw themselves at Dawn's coffin – just like in ancient Rome!" she nodded in satisfaction.

"Zarg, does this party include a Mr. Remus or Ms. Anya?" asked a new goblin with an unlined face that indicated he was quite young. He had poked his head inside the room and looked very nervous.

Zarg looked up from where he was dampening the fire. "Yes, what is it Karkash?"

Karkash winced. "I have been sent by Xerg. There is a vampire slayer in the entrance hall. Xerg refused her entry because we do not associate with the dangerous slayers but now she just threw Xerg into a wall. Xerg feels her presence may be bad for business and ordered me to find her party."

Willow, Anya, Sirius, and Remus shared a wide-eyed look and immediately rushed out of the room and into the hallway. Once they got to the entrance hall they saw five wizards wearing scarlet Gringotts robes pointing their wands at Buffy with another dozen angry goblins growling at her and holding silver weaponry.

"I need to see my friends right now! I swear, if you try to stop me I will throw you _all_ against the wall – and break your stupid pointy sticks!" Buffy glared at the wizards who shrank back a little at the promise in her voice.

"So much for flying under the radar," Willow muttered.

"She really does think with her fists, doesn't she?" mused Remus with bemused smile as he glanced at Sirius.

"Buffy! We're here!" shouted Willow. "What's the matter?"

Anya narrowed her eyes at the wizards and goblins who were still looking at Buffy like they were ready to hex her any moment. "Considering that I am a millionaire investor in your bank I advise you to stop pointing your wands at my friend and leave us alone!" she cautioned in a haughty voice.

They all glanced at a goblin with greased black hair – likely the Xerg character they talked about – who nodded in agreement before reluctantly walking away.

"Dawn's missing," Buffy said in a painful voice. "Her body is gone. Someone took her."

Willow nodded as she registered that awful statement. "Ok, let's go to Luna's uncle's to pick up her and Kennedy and then we'll go on the search," she answered matter-of-factly. Buffy was always their leader but Willow could see that she needed someone to help her – she looked so lost at the moment.

Buffy nodded in relief. "Good."

"So how did you survive the Killing Curse?" asked Kennedy in a thoughtful voice to Dawn. They, plus Luna, were sitting in Lovegood's Wand Emporium sipping tea and eating treacle tarts. Luna's uncle had sent an owl to the Department of Magical Affairs to inform Buffy to travel here so they were just waiting for everyone at the moment.

Dawn shrugged. "No freaking idea. Happy I did, though."

Kennedy nodded. "Yes, that is good news. It's just, well, no one survives that curse."

"Harry Potter did," Luna added.

"He did?" squeaked Dawn. "How?

"The Dark Lord murdered Harry and then presumably tried to kill little Harry Potter when he was a baby. No one knows how he survived either. Although," Kennedy smirked, "guess he's not that special anymore now that you're still alive."

"Huh," was all Dawn could say. The last couple hours had been crazy and she still couldn't really wrap her head around everything. She took a deep breath and went behind the beaded doorway to get more treacle tarts – they were delicious and Bartholomaus told them to make themselves at home and use the kitchen as they wished.

Then front door of the shop slammed open with enough force to rattle the cabinets. Luna and Kennedy stared in shock at the sight of Buffy's crazed eyes and disheveled hair, as well as the worried looks of the other four adults with her.

"Kennedy? Luna? Come on, we've got to go," Buffy called.

"Why?" Luna asked in a puzzled voice.

"Dawn's missing," Buffy said in a terse voice. "We've got to find her."

Dawn's ears perked up at the mention of her name and Buffy's voice. Immediately she felt awash with guilt for Buffy thinking that she was dead. Sure, it wasn't her fault but she knew her older sister must be freaking out right now. She hurriedly made her way into the other room and simply waved.

"Uh, hey," Dawn said with a chagrin. "Looking for me?" she smiled tentatively.

Buffy, Willow, Sirius, Anya, and Remus stared at Dawn in shock.

"What the bloody hell?" Sirius gasped.

Buffy's face hardened. "Nice try, you intangible bastard. You really think we're going to fall for that?"

Dawn frowned in confusion. "Um, what the heck are you talking about, Buffy? Fall for what?" She was confused why Buffy wasn't jumping with joy at seeing her Lazarus-type maneuver.

"Buffy, Dawn's alive," Luna explained in a soft voice.

"No," Buffy frowned. "She's not. This is the First just trying to mess with us again." She walked menacingly towards Dawn. "You really think you can just play with us like that? First you kill my sister and now you think you can pretend to be her? Well I don't think so," Buffy spat out each word like it left a dirty taste in her mouth.

"Buffy, stop being stupid," Dawn rolled her eyes. "I'm not the First. After all, if I was the First would I do this?" Dawn smacked the side of Buffy's head.

"Ow!" Buffy gingerly rubbed the spot. Then she looked at Dawn with new eyes and her lip trembled slightly. "Dawn?" she tentatively asked; hope evident in her eyes.

"Duh!" Dawn responded with another eye roll. But she couldn't say anything else because suddenly Buffy was picking her up and squeezing her so hard that breathing was becoming difficult. "Buffy, if you don't loosen up I think I might die for real!" she gasped out.

"Oops, sorry," Buffy apologized with a mega-watt smile on her face. "I just can't believe it. How?" she asked in concern as she tucked a stray strand of hair behind Dawn's ear.

Before she could answer, Dawn was engulfed by Willow in a huge hug. "Dawnie I am so glad that you're okay!"

"Thanks Willow," Dawn grinned at the love in Willow's eyes. Her sister's best friend had always been there for her – especially when she needed it – and Dawn was eternally grateful to her.

"Don't you ever scare us like that again," Sirius warned as he pulled Dawn away from Willow and hugged her.

Dawn smirked as Sirius pulled back. "Sure, I'll try not to jump in front of any more curses."

He cuffed her on the back of her head. "Don't get smart with me, young lady," he admonished sternly, but his eyes sparkled with happiness.

Remus smiled. "I'm glad to see you alive and well, Dawn." The werewolf looked like he was debating whether to hug her or not so she made the decision for him.

"Thanks, Remus," she said as she hugged him. In the past month she had grown to care for the wizard a great deal – and was so happy that it just wasn't Sirius teaching her anymore. She loved Sirius but Remus was the best teacher she had ever had.

When she pulled back from him, Dawn noticed Anya fidgeting and looking at her oddly. "Anya, you okay?" Dawn asked with a raised brow.

Anya pursed her lips. "Sometimes I dislike this wide range of human emotions. One second I was extremely sad about you dying, because even though you do whine frequently and are rather annoying I have strong feelings for you. Except, not sexy feelings," she frowned in case they got the wrong idea. "And not really sisterly feelings – more like you are my very annoying niece that I still love regardless. And now here you are all alive and well," Anya sniffled and she pulled Dawn into a hug. "I'm just very happy that you're alive."

"I love you too, Anya," whispered Dawn; touched by the woman's verbal and non-verbal communications.

"Is everything alright in here?' asked Bartholomaus as he stuck his head through the beaded curtain.

Buffy stepped behind Dawn and wrapped her arms around her. "Yeah, now it is," she whispered in a joyful voice.

Bartholomaus grinned and pulled his fur-lined Russian-esque hat over his heart. "Ah, you must be her sister, Buffy. I am Bartholomaus Lovegood and this is my shop. Dawn has already found her wand but you're all welcome to stay for lunch. Brumhilda is fixing up her famous venison stew."

"You got your wand? That's excellent, Dawn!" exclaimed Willow.

"What kind is it?" asked Remus in interest. Dawn smiled, shrugged, and looked at Bartholomaus expectantly.

"Sequoia wood, 11 ½ inches, pliable, with a phoenix feather at its core – a unique wand for a what appears to be an unique girl," Bartholomaus mused thoughtfully. "Very good for transfiguration, by the way."

"Unusual?" Buffy let out a nervous laugh. "Oh no, our Dawnie is a very normal young woman," she reassured him.

"Who just manages to avoid the Killing Curse," Sirius muttered before Willow could smack his arm with a frown.

Remus turned to Dawn. "Well I imagine our tutoring sessions will go far easier now that you have your own wand. Trust me, all the difference in the world is made when a witch has her own wand to command. Just look at Sirius – his wand works more or less but it doesn't work as smoothly for him since it is not one that chose him."

"Ah, do you need a wand as well, sir?" asked Bartholomaus.

"Well, actually now that you mention it that would work," Sirius shrugged.

"Wonderful!" boomed Bartholomaus in excitement – the man must really enjoy selling wands. "And what about you, miss?" he asked Anya.

"Me? Oh, well, I'm not a witch – not anymore," she said quickly.

"Anya, you used my wand in the meadow. Clearly your talents speak differently," countered Remus with a smile.

"Whatever you may think, I am never wrong about my judgments," grinned Bartholomaus. "I can tell that you need a wand as well." Then he frowned as he gave Anya a closer look. "Have we met before, Ms…?"

Anya gave him a close look as well. Her eyes widened slightly before she pasted a bright smile on her face and suddenly began speaking in a mild southern accent. "Nope! Don't think so. My name is Anya Christina Emmanuella Jenkins and I was born down in Texas on the fourth of July. In face I've never been 'round these here parts before, by the way, where are y'all located right now. Pittsburg? Portland? Golly, I always mix up those 'p' cities," she giggled like a school girl.

The Scoobies were all staring at Anya like she sprouted a second head.

"Right. Well," Bartholomaus shrugged. "You just reminded me of my ex-wife's friend for a moment, the one who helped move her stuff out."

"Your ex-wife?" Dawn gasped as she connected the dots.

"Yeah, but that was a long time ago," Bartholomaus shrugged again. "We weren't very compatible. She just didn't understand my love of the outdoors and observing the Sasquatch in their native habitat. But ever since I met Brumhilda I haven't looked back!" he said with a loving smile. "Brumhilda darling, will you bring out some more tea for our guests?"

As Brumhilda carried in another tea tray, the mouths of Kennedy, Buffy, Willow, Sirius, and Remus dropped in shock – while Anya just kept smiling nervously.

"Now let's get those wands of yours!" boomed Bartholomaus eagerly.

The rest of the afternoon – now lightened by the realization that somehow Dawn was still alive – went by quickly. Sirius and Anya both got their wands and afterwards Anya offered to take Dawn on a shopping spree – perhaps to celebrate Dawn being alive but more likely because Anya wanted to escape Lovegood's Wand Emporium as soon as possible.

The time spent browsing the magical shops was a happy one. Buffy was constantly hugging or talking to Dawn as they tried on fancy wizarding clothes; as if the slayer still couldn't believe her sister was alive. The trip to the Apothecary had been surreal – between Sirius and Anya they stocked up enough supplies to care for an army. Willow couldn't believe that there was potions to make bones grow back and to replenish blood. The devices they sold in the shop were also incredible.

"Oooh, I see London, I see France, I see Buffy's underpants!" giggled Dawn as she raised a magical swerving eye at Buffy.

"Dawn," Buffy rolled her eyes but she was still smiling. "What the heck is that?"

"I don't know. Said it's a magical eye," Dawn shrugged.

"Oh, can you really see under people's robes?" Anya asked brightly as she plucked the eye out of Dawn's hand and pointed it at Remus.

"Anya!" he shouted, aghast as he covered his private parts with his hands.

"Don't worry," she smirked. "It has to be, according to the label, hooked up to a person's nervous system first. You purity is safe – for now," she waggled her eyebrows and grinned salaciously – but the twitch of Remus' lips indicated he didn't mind her comments terribly much.

Besides healing supplies they rounded up an assortment of junk food like Chocolate Frogs – mostly to help make Xander, Andrew, and the potentials feel better about staying home – and headed back to the Department of Magical Affairs. Dawn showed them how to use the MAX line, which resulted in an amusing situation of everyone falling all over while Dawn – knowing what to expect – calmly stood in a corner and laughed at them.

The arrival at the Office of Secret Services didn't go as smoothly as the Scoobies would have liked. They met with Secretary Asp and Luke who seemed baffled by Dawn's recovery.

"The only thing I can think is that she was in such a deep coma her breath and heartbeat was nearly non-existant," Secretary Asp said as they sat around a large rectangular oak table in a study surrounded by bookshelves.

"But that still doesn't explain how she is still alive. Only Harry Potter is known to survive the Killing Curse," Luke mentioned.

"Okay, well, see that's good," Buffy pointed out. "If Harry lived then it is obvious that humans _can_ survive the Killing Curse. I mean, it's not like they have to be not quite human to survive," she said quickly.

"Yes, well it would be nice to figure out how so we could better protect people," Luke said.

"Then what we need to ask is how did Harry Potter surive in the first place. That would give us some answers. Sirius, Remus, do either of you know?" Kennedy inquired.

Remus and Sirius shared a look as they silently communicated. "This information must not go past this room, alright?" Sirius asked.

There was a chorus of agreement and he continued. "Albus Dumbledore told us that from his investigation of Harry and the Potter's house that powerful earth magic was used the night of Voldemort's attack."

"Earth magic?" Willow asked in surprise. "The Potters used earth magic?"

Sirius shrugged. "They never spoke of it to me but Dumbledore said that Lily had been visiting with your Coven leader Amelia frequently before the Fedelius charm took place. Furthermore, through Legilimency on Harry," Sirius grimaced – Willow didn't think he appreciated the headmaster doing so to Harry, "he believes that Lily gave her life in protecting Harry and somehow triggered a powerful spell that only the bearer of life can give. This sort of spell apparently protects the recipient against magical means of death."

"Really?" Kennedy asked in surprise.

"But that doesn't explain the survival of Ms. Summers," pointed out Secretary Asp.

Buffy glanced at Willow and Dawn before turning her attention back to Sirius. "So, does it matter when the spell happened? And does it have to be conciously performed?"

"Dumbeldore said it didn't have to be concious but he thinks that Lily knew of the spell beforehand, thanks to his talks with Amelia. As for when it needs to take place," Sirius shrugged. "I really wouldn't know. But it would make sense why Rosier was killed – the spell bounced back to him just like it did to Voldemort."

"But one part doesn't make sense – did Dawn's mother or father give their life for their daughter?" asked Secretary Asp.

Buffy sighed and Willow noticed that she held Dawn's hand underneath the table. "Something like that," she answered evasively. "Listen, we really should just go home. I think," she smiled at her sister, "that Dawn and I need to bake lots of cookies and pig out on pizza."

"Of course," Secretary Asp conceded but Willow could see she wanted to ask more.

"And," Luke added, "my aunt and I have been talking. We think it would be good – especially with wizard attacks – if I continued to work with you."

"Work with me?" Buffy scoffed. "Are you serious? I'm still not sure how those dudes knew we were here and best believe it had to be you or one of your cronies. That trust we had? Gone."

"Buffy, be reasonable," Luke began.

"Be reasonable? Are you out of your flipping mind?" Buffy screeched as she stood up abruptly. "Thanks to taking _your_ advice and coming here my sister was almost killed! Someone is responsible and considering you're not one of us, I'm thinking you. So back off or you'll have to call in another Healer after I break your nose again," she growled. The rest of the Scoobies stood up as well in order to back up their leader.

"Ms. Summers, I swear on my honor that my nephew had nothing to do with this," Secretary Asp said swiftly with flashing eyes. "However, I will conduct a thorough investigation. In addition, I will make a visit to London tonight in order to speak to Minister Fudge and determine why the Unspeakables are using such force in this endeavor."

"I am very sorry for what occurred, Buffy," pleaded Luke as he made eye contact with her. "I will do whatever it takes to make up for it, just please believe me – I would never sell you out like that."

Buffy gave him a hard look. "Want to make it up? Then get me some information on the First and how to defeat it. Do that and I'll reconsider it. But," she walked over and peered threateningly into his eyes as she jabbed a finger into his chest, "screw us over again and I will stake you with your own wand."

"But don't you just stake vampires?" he asked with raised eyebrows.

She gave him a chilly smile. "You'd be surprised by how many things can be killed by a stake to the heart. Remember that, Luke."

**Later that night/early the next morning in London, England:**

Katherine Asp did not get flustered easily. She was known for keeping a cool head at all times and consistently showing the characteristics of a fine leader. That was, after all, how she rose in rank so quickly within the Department of Magical Affairs. But the events of the last few months had begun to unnerve her. First her sister Sophia had been sprouting off about various visions involving the end of the world, the slayer, and Sunnydale's Hellmouth. Once Sophia was murdered Katherine realized that she should have done something sooner to protect her dear younger sister. After that her only nephew Luke had changed into having a one-track mind when it came to getting back at Sophia's murderers and assisting the slayer. And now, she had rogue British wizards invading her land and trying to murder her people.

Yes, Katherine Asp was flustered. However, she was also angrier a caged liger and was ready to rip Minister Cornelius Fudge to parts. Her immediate transportation to London had happened rather quickly and now she was walking briskly through the Ministry of Magic's atrium with an escort of ten very intimidating OSS Agents behind her.

"Secretary Asp! Oh what a pleasure to see you!" greeted the rotund minister wearing a lime-green waistcoat grey trousers and a polka-dotted lime-green tie as they passed the overtly prejudiced foundation – honestly, Katherine did not understand the ancient ideals of European wizards. Fudge moved forward to greet her with a hug and kiss on the cheek but Katherine evaded his moves.

"You have some gall, minister," she growled. "I would advise you not to touch me unless you want your face to match your grotesque jacket.

Fudge's eyes bulged out at her threat and the four Ministry officials behind him shared nervous looks. "My dear Katherine, what does seem to be the matter? I mean," he chuckled nervously, "first this out of the blue early morning visit and now such a poor attitude. It all seems rather strange."

"Strange?" she asked in a frostily calm voice. "Perhaps it is – unless you believe unauthorized Unspeakables attacking in my city to be something to be worried about!" Her raised voice drew the attention of the nearby crowd, which pleased her. She knew the British Minister of Magic required popular public opinion to maintain his station and Katherine relished the thought of getting the man sacked. Through their interactions at international Wizarding events and her sources she had drawn the conclusion long ago that the man was a hot-aired idiot who enjoyed the sound of his own voice too much.

"Madam Secretary!" Fudge hissed in shock – looking suddenly quite nervous. "Please do not state such accusations here, especially with the public watching," he said in a meaningful low voice.

"Minister Fudge, I have solid testimony and proof that four of your Unspeakables searching for Sirius Black attacked an OSS Agent, two witches of my jurisdiction, and several important allies. They even used the Killing Curse – although they luckily missed the young witch." Katherine was no fool. If she wanted to keep Buffy Summers happy and keep Fudge from further spying on her people – after all, as a wand witch Dawn Summers was now a citizen of her jurisdiction – she needed to avoid telling the truth of Dawn's fate.

"In addition, my OSS Agents have brought back the body – shrunken for transportation," she added as Agent Sanders handed Fudge a steel locked box. "This is Nigel Goyle – one of your Unspeakables, I believe? The other man killed in the attack was Hugh Rosier who relocated to my country a little more than a decade ago – but he was British in origin and working with your people."

Fudge's face whitened until he was nearly translucent and he looked nervously at the on-lookers. "My-my dear wo-woman," he stuttered. "This is not the proper place for such a conversation."

"_You_ have no right to say what is proper or not proper. Trust me, Cornelius, I will be reporting this to the International Confederation for Wizardry and they will conduct a full investigation."

Katherine leaned closer so he could see the sincerity in her eyes. "Furthermore, I demand that you pull every single one of your field agents out of my country immediately. As of this moment the American Departmen for Magical Affairs is cutting all diplomatic ties with the British Ministry of Magic due to your malicious intent in sending Unspeakables into my country without notice and attacking my people right outside Columbia Village."

A loud gasp came from the crowd and Fudge's mouth dropped dumbly as he wiped sweat from his brow with a hankerchief that matched his jacket.

"However," she continued briskly and Katherine eyed each person in the atrium as she spoke. "If there is a change in leadership at the Ministry, we may be willing to work on repairing our relationship with Britain. Until that time, we have no desire to work with an incompetent and foolish administration. Good day to you, Minister Fudge." Katherine nodded in his direction before turning on her heel and walking towards the exit. As her footsteps sounded through the silent room she grinned to herself.

Damn, that had felt quite good – Score one for the Yanks.

A/N:

Happy Memorial Day dearest Readers! Please leave a review and tell me what you think! Plus, big shout-outs to Kzinti Killer & Avon/Luckie for guessing the truth of why Dawn survived! There could have been a million conjured reasons but that is the one I chose for this particular story. Was anyone else thinking the right answer too?

Dearest Readers, now that Dawn's fate and the trip to Wizarding Portland has been wrapped up, we move onto a new part of the story. Lucius starts making some moves and getting serious with his evil plans – plans that threaten Willow and Sirius' relationship and Sirius' very life…

*Thanks to AllenPitt for the ideas on Anya & her Gringott's account. A lot of Anya's history came about through conversations with him :)

*DISCAIMER: The sign on Gringott's is from the first HP book and Griphook is another Rowling character – the one who helped Harry in both the 1st and 7th book. Vault 711 is Sirius' vault number. But the other Gringott's things – like international transactions – I came up with.

*Whoever can guess how I came up with Sirius' identification number gets a prize (lol, okay maybe not a real one) ! It probably is quite easy to guess but I enjoy offering mini-contests :)

* The Oregon Trail computer game - .org/wiki/The_Oregon_Trail_(video_game)

*Wailing women hired to mourn – This is an ancient tradition and still done in some parts of the world today. Couldn't find a good site that gives info but this one briefly discusses it:


	59. Storyteller

**Storyteller**

**A/N: **

**Okay, in order to make sure there is no confusion, allow me to properly explain a couple things: **

1. The previous chapter occurred in mid-January and it is now the beginning of March. The Summers' home has been renovated several times to accommodate twentysome Potentials. Life has been happening in the meantime but nothing so earth shattering that it required its own chapter.

2. **Disclaimer: **Some dialogue from Ep #16 ('Storyteller') is used in this chapter. No harm is intended!

3. This chapter is done a little bit differently than normal – as a bit of a homage to the 'Storyteller' episode and the excellence that is Andrew ;) I do hope you enjoy it! It is different, maybe it works, maybe it doesn't – I'll let you be the judge of that. Future chapters will revert back to the normal writing style :)

4. And **CONGRATULATIONS** to Dear Reader xbarbiegirlx who correctly guessed that Sirius Black's Gringotts Identification number was his name spelled out on a phone keypad ;) You are Ze Winner! For your prize I will loan out Andrew to you to use as your minion! …teehee ;) Thank you to EVERYONE who reviewed the previous chapter!

* * *

**The Journal of Andrew Wells,****  
**_**(un) **_**Official Historian of the Sunnydale Hellmouth **

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**March 1, 2003  
8:00AM**  
_  
Greetings, Gentle Readers! Welcome to my Journal, which I promise shall be an accurate and compelling look at the lives of the Slayer of the Vampyrs and her Brave Friends._

You see, Gentle Readers, I had originally planned to document this historical and possibly likely Apocalypse via my video camera… however, I learned the unfortunate lesson of what happens when one walks in on an witch-turned ex-demon-turned-witch and a werewolf naked on a desk in the library.

Now, with no video camera I decided to follow in the footsteps of Sir (I am not quite sure if he is a 'Sir' but I believe most British people hold such a title) Rupert Giles and write my observations in a Journal – especially since I learned that the Watcher's Diaries are not shared outside the Watcher's Council. Nay, Dearest Readers, I imagine myself the scribe of a document ringing in truth that is available to all who desire such knowledge!

You see, we live in Perilous Times. The First Evil (which is far scarier than it sounds) is attempting to wipe out the entire line of Slayers of Vampyrs, leaving the Vivacious and Stunning Buffy Summers for last. We do not know much more except that Buffy, during her mystical adventure to the past, was shown that that the First Evil doth planneth even greater evil – for in the bowels of the Hellmouth the First has created a fearsome army of Turok-Han Vampyrs.

Yet Hope remains alive for the Slayer of Vampyrs has begun compiling her own army of Witches, Wizards, Potential Slayers, and even a Carpenter.

In the following handwritten pages you will discover more about Sunnydale and its inhabitants.

* * *

**March 1, 2003  
11:00AM**  
_  
Good morning, Dear Readers. I have spent some time observing the twenty-five potential slayers – or, as I like to call them due to my stint being on the run in Mehico, Las Potenciales – and have seen many interesting things. Buffy has raised the bar for training and today had Rona – as usual – leading a series of Karate Kid-type exercise moves. It was rather breathtaking to watch – for the most part. Las Potenciales Kennedy and Luna seem to have much trouble when it comes to hand-eye coordination (more so than I did in gym class) although I surmise that may be due to their witchiness and lack of physical education._

Yes, Gentle Readers, two of Las Potenciales are Witches from the Wizarding World. Luna is a rather odd girl from Britain who would rather spend time with her nose in a book about magical creatures rather than in a training class. However, there is a quality to her that does not go unnoticed by such a Trained Eye as mine. Yes, I believe that sprite of a girl shall go far.

Kennedy on the other hand is a complex person. She is as abrasive as an irate Hutt to most of us, yet she is as gentle as a young Jar Jar Binks when she is with her witch friends Willow Rosenberg and Amy Madison (note: Kennedy is also as annoying as Jar Jar as well. In fact, just the other day she threw my mint edition Wolverine first edition comic book just because I almost walked in on her in the bathroom!)

Those two witch friends in question have an interesting history. Willow was once evil and know as the Dark One – trust me, Gentle Reader, you did not want to cross her path! Amy is a schoolmate of Willow's who also spent three years as a rat. Both are recovering magic-o-holics and have recently renewed their friendship. Now they, along with Kennedy, hold meetings twice a week as they practice spells.

Oh goody, I've just heard Remus announce that lunch is served! I am so glad the wizards are here and able to use magic to cook – otherwise we'd probably be eating pasta every day with the great amount of people living here.

Farewell for now!

**

* * *

**

**March 1, 2003  
12:30PM**  
_  
Dearest Readers,_

I am writing to you today in the dining room as I listen to Xander and Anya wash the dishes in the kitchen. Since I have not seen them interact ever since Anya began dating Remus Lupin the Werewolf I imagine this to be very interesting. In fact, I will write out their dialogue so you can get a good image of interactions amongst the Slayer Army – also known as 'The Scoobies' to an intimate few (such as I, of course).

Xander: So, Ahn, how goes things with Remus?

Anya _(who sounds rather flustered): _Oh, good, good, you know. Very nice.

Xander: I heard Andrew commenting about some incident in the library.

Anya: What? Why that damn little pipsqueak! I'm going to kill him!

_(Gentle Readers, please remember this if I am found dead and foul play is suspected) _

Xander: So it's true? You and the werewolf are a done deal now?"

Anya: Xander I… I don't know what to say.

Xander: Just say the truth, Anya. It's what you're best at.

_(Oh trust me, Dearest Readers, this is sooooo true. Anya is as Blunt as she is Beautiful!) _

Anya: You're right. Remus and I… We do seem to have taken a new step in our relationship.

Xander: Are you happy?

_(There is a long moment of silence, as you can tell from my doodlings, Gentle Readers.)_

Anya: Happy? Well, yes. I suppose I am, actually. Does that upset you?

Xander: Honestly? A part of me is always going to love you, Ahn. There was a time I imagined the rest of my life with you – that doesn't just go away. But at the same time, you were right when we talked before Christmas. Me, you, it just doesn't feel right like it used to.

Anya: I know what you mean… You were an important part of my life at one time and a part of me is always going to love you too… So you're not upset?

Xander: No, I'm glad that you're happy. In fact, I think I may have found someone too. And I just thought you should know first, out of respect for what we had.

Anya: Is it that weird Tonks girl?

Xander: Isn't that the pot calling the kettle black?

_(Gentle Readers: Tonks is the Auror cousin of Sirius Black and a very lovely young woman who can change her features at will – AKA she is super cool. In fact, one time for me she changed herself into a Vulcan! Soooo cool!) _

Anya: Har de har. I'm just saying she has pink hair and a weird sense of humor. So you like her? But she lives in England! How do you hang out?

Xander: We've been pen pals for the last month and a half.

Anya: And she makes you happy?

Xander: Yeah, she does. Plus, you know, she's not a normal human woman therefore she's totally my type.

_(Gentle Readers: Trust me, the only person who has dated an odder set of people is Pamela Anderson. I mean, Tommy and Kid Rock? Eww.) _

Anya: Good, because if she does something to make you not happy I'll call up one of my Vengeance Demon friends. I know this guy Carl who specifically avenges distraught men – he's best known for his work for Justin Timberlake.

Xander: Whoa, you mean he's the reason why Britney went psycho?

Anya: Yup. It was one of those long-lasting and immense suffering type of wishes so he got a hell of a promotion at the office. Corner office overlooking a torture chamber and everything.

Xander: Well, gee, thanks Anya. That means a lot.

Anya: It's nothing, really.

_(Aww, Gentle Readers! I think they're hugging right now! Isn't that so sweet? Anyways, now I better run before they discover me eavesdropping!) _

**

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**

**March 1, 2003  
7:00PM**  
_  
It is almost twilight, Gentle Readers and that means the Sunnydale Coven is meeting right now. Of course, as I mentioned before, the Sunnydale Coven consists of Willow, Amy, and Kennedy. Their meetings are often secret and carried out alone in the study. However, due to the nice weather it is being moved outside – which means it will be easier for me to spy upon them!_

I have somehow managed to make friends with the beast known as Buckbeak. I think it is because I feed him Twizzlers – he seems to have an affinity for those delicious strands of licorice. Today I have given him a whole bag in hopes that he would hide me. Right now I am hiding behind him as he lays down on the ground and eats. The witches should be coming shortly.

Ah! Here they are!

I believe, Gentle Readers, that it may be most meaningful to transcribe their conversation as I did with Xander and Anya. After all – it is not considered spying if I am the (un)Official Historian, is it?

Ooh, they are laughing as they walk into the backyard and form a circle. It is interesting to note, Gentle Readers, that young Ms. Kennedy Monroe frequently is caught staring at the older Ms. Willow Rosenberg. You see, Kennedy is a lesbian and Willow used to be a lesbian but now dates the Dashing Sirius Black, Famed Escaped Convict of the Wizarding World. Of course, I am not quite sure why Kennedy thinks that Willow would prefer her to Sirius. Sirius is, of course, a very handsome older debonair gentleman with a soft mane of illustrious black hair and a smile that lights up the room…..

Oh! Excuse me, Gentle Readers, I had to, um, adjust something but I am back now. Oh look! The witches have formed a circle and are chanting to Heck-a-tay or someone. This is actually very boring. I was hoping to see some cool spells – to tell you, of course, Gentle Readers!

Oooh, wait. Now I think they are gossiping. This is even better than spells!

Amy: So, Will, tell me is – is Xander still seeing that Anya girl?

Willow: Amy! I didn't know you were interested in Xander!

Amy: Eh, what can I say? I like a man who knows how to use his wood!  
_  
(Dearest Readers: I am not quite sure what that means but I think Amy admires the fact that Xander works in construction. He does, after all, look quite nice when he arrives home from a sweaty day on the job…Although I am not sure why that would make the girls laugh so much…)_

Kennedy: You are so bad, Amy.

Willow: Sorry, Amy. Xander's actually into this British witch who's actually Sirius' cousin.

Amy: Well that sucks. What's up with Sirius, anyways? When I came in and told Buffy I was meeting up with you and Kennedy in the backyard he gave me a dirty look.

Willow: What? What are you talking about? Sirius wouldn't do that.

Kennedy: Yeah right, Will. He's totally possessive like a Neanderthal over you. He hates that you spend time with us.

Willow: Nooo, you're wrong. Sirius and I talked about that forever ago. He's fine with this; he knows how much it means to me.

Kennedy: Really? He totally supports you and your magical use?

Amy: Yeah, I thought he freaked out about you sucking energy from him to open up that portal to bring Buffy back.  
_  
(Gentle Readers: Last week Buffy traveled through a portal to see how the First Slayer of Vampyrs was created. To bring her back Willow went all dark magic Dark One for a moment and sucked energy from Sirius and Kennedy – but luckily her ever present Best Friend, Xander, brought her back from the brink of madness. Of course, it freaked Sirius out as he was exposed to the Dark One for the very first time but they seem to be doing fine now. However, on the other hand Kennedy never got mad about Willow doing such a Dark Act. Perhaps it is because they are such good friends – or something more?) _

Willow: No, no. I mean, okay, yeah. He freaked a little. I mean, I freaking sucked energy from him. He had never seen me like that, it makes sense that he would be concerned.

Kennedy: Freaked out? Willow are you listening to yourself? If Sirius really loves you then he should fully accept all of you – even when you go all black-eyed. That magic is a part of you.

Willow: Well I don't WANT that magic to be a part of me. And Sirius does accept me! We talked about things yesterday and he understands – he just had to get over the shock of everything, that's all.

Amy: I don't know, Will. There's just something about him….

Willow: What?

Amy: I'm just saying, Kennedy didn't freak out. I wouldn't have either. I just think that Sirius doesn't get you.

Willow: Amy, how can you say that? Sirius does so get me.

Kennedy: Yeah, but if he did he wouldn't make you feel bad about using your power.

Willow: Of course he had a right to! I should not have used dark magic to open that portal – especially when I used him to do so.

Kennedy: No? Then what should you have done? Leave Buffy to rot in some hell-hole ancient dimension? Let's be serious, for once. We three have been meeting for over two months now and I think we've tip-toed around the subject long enough.

Willow: What subject?

Kennedy: You and your fear to use magic. Listen, Willow, that dark magic is a part of you whether you like it or not. It is you. And by accessing it you can be stronger. I wouldn't be surprised if you could use your powers to wipe out the First once and for all.

Willow: Don't say such things, Kennedy. To have that kind of power I – well I would have to go to that dark place again. And I'm not going there.

Amy: Willow, I don't think Kennedy means it like that. It's just, that power is a part of you and you can control it if you want to. Things are getting bad and Potentials are still dying before they get to Sunnydale. Maybe you need to start being more pragmatic and think about the big picture.  
_  
(Uh-oh, Dearest Readers. I am peeking over the top of Buckbeak's back and Willow just stood up. She looks very angry. Not Flay-Happy angry, thank god, but angry.) _

Willow: I can't believe you guys are telling me to use dark magic! I thought you wanted to support my recovery. And you! You, Amy, should know better than that to tempt me.

Amy: Whoa, back up. This isn't an after-school special where we're the bad kids peer pressuring you. We're not trying to tempt you, Will. We're just scared.

Kennedy: Yeah, scared of what's going to happen. We're just trying to think outside the box, ya know?  
_  
(Willow doesn't seem to know what to do, Gentle Readers. I for one do NOT want to see Dark Willow make an appearance so I would prefer that they stop talking about Dark Magic. Plus, I can't really believe that Sirius is as bad as they say. I was hanging out with Sirius and Xander when Amy came in earlier and he never gave her a dirty look. How peculiar she would say so.) _

Willow: I get you guys being scared, really, just, ya know, that's not cool. We'll figure out something to do with the First, okay? Besides, I don't think I can control my magic as well as you think – when Dawn was almost killed in January I lost it for a moment. I hate to think of what would happen if something happened to someone else I loved.

Amy: No problem, Will. We get it.

Kennedy: Yeah, we'll just work on another plan. Hey, still want to do a couple more spells? Amy's been working on way to create false sunlight to kill vamps that might work by using my wand and your guys' powers.

Willow: Yeah, that sounds really cool! Let's do that.  
_  
(Fake sunlight could be cool! But I'm also cold without my jacket so I believe it is time to sneak in. Good night Gentle Readers!) _

**

* * *

**

**March 2, 2003  
9:00AM**  
_  
Guess what, Dearest Readers? I have been busy trying to find first-person source materials to add this Journal in order to enhance its value. Dawn just left for school (which is funny because apparently Sunnydale High is going to crazy but Buffy says Dawn has to do some normal teenage things, like suffer the horrors of high school) and I have found a Letter addressed to her. It is possible that I found it in her room underneath her mattress, but if anyone asks I found it in the living room, okay?_

Anyways, I will paste the letter here so you may see the life of a Sunnydalian through the eyes of a teenage girl. Enjoy!

Dawn,

Thanks for your letter this week and the hex you managed to trick Remus into telling you. Remus was always laid-back at school when he was a professor so I guess it's hard for me to imagine he's a wild prankster at heart – Although maybe you're right about Sirius being a bad influence :) Anyways, you should have seen Malfoy's face when he was forced to do the Macarena and other Muggle dances right in the middle of dinner! It was one of the best things I've seen in my life.

Speaking of him, I tried spying on Malfoy with Hermione and Ron but the most he said about his father was that he was "away on business". By the way – Hermione says hi and so does Ron. And no, don't even both asking again – Hermione and Ron are still not a couple! Frankly, they fight so much just as friends that I'm not really looking forward to them dating…

As for the nightmares you talked about having, I understand that you don't feel like you can talk to anyone else – believe me. Sometimes I still can hear Voldemort's voice in my dreams… Although I haven't had a really strong dream since the end of summer – the one where the Muggle was killed, remember? It's normal, I think, for you to have nightmares but I wouldn't worry about it. After all, that American Secretary lady told you she was going to cremate Rosier's body, right? So with that – and the fact that he was (according to you) "a lame minion" – I don't think you should worry.

I know Buffy said that you couldn't attend the Salem Institute and that she wanted to keep you at home where you'll be safe… but obviously you still get in trouble in Sunnydale. After reading all your stories I think you've been attacked more often than me! Of course, you had a Hell Goddess after you and I just have a Dark Wizard so you may actually have won that one. Still though, I think you should ask Buffy if you can come to Hogwarts next year. It seems like you're catching up real quick now that you have your own wand so I bet you'd be ready for classes. I know because of your age you'd be a 7th Year… But maybe Dumbledore could put you into our year since you're so new to studying magic? By the end of Summer you could easily be ready for 5th Year level classes, plus you could be in classes with me, and Hermione & Ron. Hermione says she really hopes you can come… And I think that would be cool too. Who knows, maybe you could end up on my Quidditch team! I mean you weren't thaaaaat bad over the holidays… haha.

Anyways, write back soon. Now that the 2nd Task is finished I've got a lot of free time before the final one and Merlin knows I get bored around here.

-Harry

_Aw, isn't that neat, Dearest Readers? I hope if Dawn gets to go to Hogwarts I can too! Prayhaps this Dumbledore fellow everyone speaks of would hire me as a Historian! That would be Epic! _

**

* * *

**

**March 2, 2003  
4:00pm**  
_  
Gentle Readers, I am not quite sure what to do. You see, I was sorting through my Magic the Gathering cards in the library when Sirius and Willow stepped in. Now I was already hiding between the couch and the window because I saw Xander eying my cards earlier and didn't want him to find me. Okay, and maybe I was also hiding because Dawn realized there was a letter missing from under her bed and she's rampaging around the house._

But I digress.

Anyways, I thought they were only going to come in for a book but now they are making out on the couch! At least it's the couch opposite mine so I am not directly behind them, but still! And I can't get up and leave because then that would make me look suspicious and Anya has already been telling people stories about me (regarding her own library incident). Merlin's Beard (as Sirius would say)! Why don't people understand that libraries are for reading and playing with cards? Not romantic liaisons!

Then again, I guess the Scoobies have never had a normal library experience. But still.

So I suppose I will just wait until they are done. Oh, and maybe peek around the corner of my couch at them. Ooooh Willow is straddling him now! Who would have thought the Dark One had a darker, dominatrix, controlling side?

…Hmmm. Now I'm feeling a little bit dirty on the inside.

Oh! They've finished! But now they're talking. Shall I transcribe their conversation for you Dear Readers? Why yes, I believe I shall!

Sirius: So do you want to go for a ride on Buckbeak today? It's been at least a week since we've taken him out.

Willow: I don't know, Sirius. I think I'm more tired than I thought.

Sirius: Why? You slept like a rock last night and for at least ten hours.

Willow: I'm not sure. I keep having weird dreams.

Sirius: You've been having those for a while. And you still cannot remember anything about them?

Willow: Nope. Just that they keep waking me up in the middle of the night.

Sirius: Maybe they are dreams about frogs.  
_  
(Heehee. In case you didn't know, Dearest Readers, the most powerful witch in the world has frog fear. Isn't that hilarious? If only Jonathon and I had known that – we could have dressed up as giant frogs and scared her away during her Reign of Dark Terror in Sunnydale!) _

Willow: Hush, you. No, I think I'm mostly tired from the spell last night. Did I tell you? Kennedy, Amy, and I are trying to figure out how to create a ball of sunlight! Tara and I had tried that but it never worked,; but I think with the power of three witches we might be able to do it. I mean, we know that's what the ubervamps' weakness is so if we could generate a huge fake sun we could take out that army in the Hellmouth!

Sirius: That would be pretty amazing, Willow. But I'm worried about these spells tiring you out. After what happened last week, shouldn't you be taking it easy?

Willow: What do you mean?  
_  
(Uh-Oh Dearest Readers! Me thinks I hear a touch of Dark Willow!)  
_  
Sirius: Ah, well just that you had a close call last week and maybe you should, you know, just not try anything big for a while.

Willow: Sirius, I thought we discussed this! Okay, yeah. Close call last week. But I pulled back AND saved Buffy at the same time.

Sirius: Okay, I'm sorry. I just worry, that's all. It just seems like maybe you're losing your focus. Are you sure what you're doing with Kennedy and Amy is helping?  
_  
(Oops. Now, Dearest Readers, I have known the love of many a woman … in the online world anyways… and I know when a lady is angry. Judging from her silence, me thinks Willow is not too pleased with her Dashing Escaped Convict.)  
_  
Sirius: Willow?

Willow: Sirius, I understand that there is an age gap in our relationship and that you are older. But that does NOT mean that you get to lecture me like I'm Harry's age. I know what I'm doing – the work I'm doing with Amy and Kennedy IS helpful and together we're going to come up with a way to help Buffy.

Sirius: Willow! I'm not trying to lecture you. You know I don't think of you as a child – don't be so foolish.

Willow: Foolish! Who are you calling foolish?

Sirius: The woman who is snapping at me for just trying to show I care about her! Geez, is it that time of month?

Willow: Why you, you Neanderthal!

Sirius: Neanderthal? Who are you calling a Neanderthal? You're the one who does primal magic, not me.

Willow: Oh, I suppose your style of magic is better, is that what you're saying? You think that you're better than me?

Sirius: What? No! Dammit Willow, you know I didn't mean that. Merlin's Beard! I don't even know why we're fighting!

Willow: I don't know either.

Sirius: Look, I'm sorry. I love you, but that also means I just want to take care of you. I know you can take care of yourself, magically speaking, but what kind of man would I be if I didn't worry about the most important thing in the world to me?  
_  
Dearest Readers, please join me in an "AWWWWWWWWWW")  
_  
Willow: Sirius, I'm so sorry. I don't know why I snapped at you. I guess those dreams really are screwing up my sleep. I love you too, I'm sorry for yelling at you… You're the most important thing in the world to me too.

Sirius: Do you think… Do you think maybe someone's messing with you? With your dreams?

Willow: I don't know. You'd think I'd know if someone was interfering with my dreams. Nonetheless, maybe I'll craft a dreamcatcher tonight – that might help. Amy and I were supposed to go shopping, we'll just stop by the craft store and make one together and do a little spell.

Sirius: Ah, well maybe I should do it.

Willow: You don't trust Amy?

Sirius: No! No, that's not it. I just want to make you something, you know, as a gift for my favorite little Ginger.

Willow _(who is laughing) _: Oh my goddess, you really need to stop hanging around Xander. I can't believe he's exposed you to South Park.

Sirius: Come on now, it is hilarious! Plus, Remus likes it too and I think it's good for him and Xander to hang out. Remus is my best mate but Xander's become a good friend too. Now that we all do that together I don't think there's that awkwardness between Remus and Xander over Anya anymore.

Willow: True, that is a good thing I guess. I just hate that fat Jew-hating Cartman kid.

Sirius: I know baby, I know.

_Ohhhhh, they're kissing again. Ew. Although I do wonder what it would be like to kiss hi…her. Willow. Yeah, Willow._

* * *

**March 3, 2003  
9:45AM**  
_  
I write the following passage with great excitement, Dearest Readers! For just fifteen minutes ago the rough and tumble devilishly handsome Wizarding detective man from the Office of Secret Services, Luke Matthews, has arrived at the house. Buffy has called together an assembly of her top Lieutenants to meet with him. Of course, Buffy distrusts the handsome young wizard because she believes he may have something to do with the Unspeakables attacking them. Anyways, Gentle Readers, the living room is filled with Buffy, Giles, Xander, Willow, Sirius, Remus, Anya, and Spike. Oh, wait, here comes Kennedy as well – she does have a tendency to sneak in to places even more than me!_

Let us see what the meeting shall bring, shall we?

Buffy: So. Luke. What brings you here? I hope you got more information on the First, like I told you to, or else you may be needing that Healer again.

Luke: Ah, Buffy, you are such a tease – and so soft-hearted I must add.  
_  
(Is it just me, Gentle Reader, or is Luke flirting with Buffy? Not that I can blame him for she is as Beautiful as she is Brave.)  
_  
Spike: Shut your pie-hole mate, and tell us some good information or get out.  
_  
(Judging by Spike's growling tone I gather that I was not the only one to notice that. There is a great deal of passion and chemistry between the Vampyr and Slayer of Vampyrs – I can only hope those two crazy kids can make a go of it!)  
_  
Luke: Right, no preamble, of course. After an exhaustive six weeks of research I found this.  
_  
(Oooh, he just pulled out a really dusty book about the size of an Archie Digest Comic!)  
_  
Buffy: What's that?

Luke: This book was found located in a tomb inside Egypt's Valley of the Kings. It is written in ancient Egyptian but the experts at the Department confirm that it is a translation of a much earlier document.

Buffy: It looks like a bunch of little pictures to me. Is there a Cliff Notes for this?

Luke: My experts have confirmed that it tells the history of the beginning of the world – including the First Evil and how the Turok-Han were banished from the world.

Giles: Indeed? What does it say?

Luke: That the Turok-Han cannot be defeated in battle by any normal human and it tells the story of a young woman with great strength who killed the last Turok-Han with a fearsome scythe.

Buffy: A scythe? Are you kidding me? I killed that thing with some wire – okay, yeah after it kicked my ass. But still.

Luke: Well that is what I thought you would find interesting. The scythe is apparently a magical weapon forged by a group of women named the Guardians who gave it to the Slayer.

Buffy: Oooh, I get a shiny weapon?

Giles: The Guardians? Are you sure you don't mean the Watchers?

Luke: No, it says Guardians right there in plain English… Okay, plain hieroglyphics, but you get the idea. And yes, the mention of the Slayer's Mystical Weapon is what made me think you needed to see this. I thought it might be a useful tool.

Buffy: Well, what would be really useful is if I had the sharp shininess and not just a book talking about it.

Luke: My people are working on that. My aunt released five agents to my detail who are working overseas and scanning the entire length of the Nile.

Buffy: Well, goody. Now I suppose you think I'm going to start trusting you again?  
_  
(Ouch, Dearest Readers! Buffy still seems very angry about the near-death of her youngest sister and Mystical Key! Poor Agent Matthews should know better than to get on the bad side of a Slayer of Vampyrs!)  
_  
Luke: I am trying my best to prove myself to you.

Buffy: Bring me the Turok Slice-n-Dicer and we may be able to work something out.

Luke: We are working on that. In addition, I have been able to work out something special for your group through the Office of Transportation. I know you are having trouble sending the potential slayers from around the world here-

Buffy: How do you know that?

Luke: Really, Buffy. We are the Office of Secret Services for a reason. We've been collecting reports of unusual murders on teenage girls by cause of knife wounds, plus Mr. Giles' credit card report showed a trip to Chine recently – I imagine that cannot be easy to travel so far via plane when lives are at stake.

Giles: Hey! You cannot go through my personal information!

Luke: I assure you, we had the best intentions. Anyways, I have been authorized to create portkeys for your potentials. Through an almost magical satellite of sorts we can transform an item into a portkey from hundreds of miles away, as long as we have a detailed description of the object – which is why we choose such tattered old items that cannot be mistaken for something else. Then once your – who was it? Your British coven? – identifies a potential we can create a portkey and send her here.  
_  
(Isn't magic just the neatest thing, Gentle Readers? Oh, by the sounds of everyone trying to talk at once they must think so too!)  
_  
Buffy: And here's where the 'I don't trust you' comes into play.

Spike: Right, let's just deliver the poor girls into the hands of a potential murderer in league with the First!

Luke: So says the vampire who attacked me and actually does work for the First!

Spike: Oi! We're working on that, alright? Trying to figure out how to reprogram me. Don't get your knickers in a twist, Boy Wonder.

Sirius: How can we trust that someone at the Department won't give away the identities of the girls?

Luke: I've been authorized to use the facility to set up the portkeys on my own. No one else will be involved and the only other person to know will be my aunt, the Secretary. It will be very safe. Plus, my aunt has cut off ties to Britain and ordered all the British agents out.

Willow: So they're gone? No more Unspeakables?

Luke: Er, not that we know of. Problem with having foreign agents secretly in your country is not knowing whether or not they are still here. But at least they've been officially ordered out!

Buffy: And that's so reassuring. Listen-

Giles: Buffy, I think we should consider his proposal. Girls are dying everyday. By the time the Coven identifies them we rarely get to them in time. Portkey is almost instantaneous – this could save lives.

Buffy: And it could destroy them! Giles, we can't be sure this big-haired jerk isn't going to screw us over!

Luke: Sitting right here.

Giles: Be that as it may, this could prove very beneficial Buffy. I think we should do it.

Willow: Yeah, it might be good, Buff.

Sirius: Not to mention, if it goes badly we can just torture Luke later.

Buffy: True, the promise of torture is always good.

Luke: You people are so damn pleasant, you know that?

Buffy: We do. And we acknowledge you trying to do the right thing. Work the portkey business out with Giles and Sirius, Remus, or Kennedy to figure out how to work everything.

Luke: We have a deal?

Buffy: For now. But remember, screw up again and I will be wearing your teeth on a string around my neck.

Luke: And to think I believed you to have good taste in fashion…  
_  
(Oooh, Gentle Readers! What an exciting new progression in our tale! I must try to see if Luke could engineer me a portkey to the set of Star Trek! That would be uber cool!)  
_  
Buffy: Andrew? What the heck are you writing about? You've been non-stop the entire time. And you're still writing! Will you stop tha…

… … ….. …  
_  
Uh-oh, Gentle Readers, Buffy threatened to take you away! I will have to hide you. Until then, it looks like I will be going to the high school with Buffy. The Principal just called and apparently there's some bad juju going down. The Seal is making all the teens turn crazy – be it turning invisible or spontaneous combustion. Hopefully I can use my wisdom to help assist the fair people of Sunnydale!  
_

* * *

**March 3, 2003  
8:05PM**  
_  
Today I thought Buffy was going to kill me in the school basement in order to shut the Seal of Danzalthar. She didn't though… But my tears, they closed the seal. And I realized something…_

Here's the thing. I killed my best friend. There's a big fight coming, and I don't know what's going to happen. I don't even think I'm going to live through it….

That's, uh, probably the way it should be. I guess I'm

* * *

**The Journal of Andrew Wells,****  
**_**(un) **_**Official Historian of the Sunnydale Hellmouth******

**The ****  
****End. **

**

* * *

**

**A/N: **

So… hate it, like it, love it? I really adore Andrew and wanted to incorporate that episode and in the process show some things happening from his point of view. In a unique way. I had a LOT of fun writing this chapter and I hope I made it interesting and amusing – but let me know, okay? Like I said I'll go back to regular format next but I would like to hear from YOU if this style works for future stories.

Thank you!

_**…Coming up soon is the revealing of the First's Spy… and the Spy does something *very* not nice.**_


	60. The Witch is Revealed

The Witch is Revealed

A/N:

Greetings Dearest Readers! So, some of you loved the last chapter and some of you who dislike Andrew hated it. Well, thank you all for your honest feedback!

* * *

"We've been biding our time since the Elk Meadow incident but the opportunity to strike has arisen," Lucius declared in a steely voice. He stood in the front of the fireplace and watched the flickers of the flames cast shadows on the faces of his companions. With the deaths of that fool Rosier and that traitorously stupid Goyle he now only had three to assist him in this final stage.

"With help we have managed to weaken the Dark One's control over her magic and we have begun sowing the seeds of temptation within her. Now, thanks to some excellent spy work, we know the best way to strike her in her time of weakness."

Alecto showcased a row of blackened teeth in an eager grin. "We will finally be able to attack them, Lucius?"

Lucius gifted the witch with a devilish smile. "Yes, my dear Alecto. I know you have been patient and that patience will be rewarded. You see," he continued to explain his master plan, "we will capture Sirius Black and during that time you all can torture him as much as you like." Alecto licked her lips in anticipation and Macnair grunted happily at the prospect. Only his young protégé seemed less than enthusiastic at the idea.

"When they realize that Black has been kidnapped the Dark One will explode with anger and come for us. We will kill the blood-traitor in front of her and unleash the full extent of Willow's anger and power. From there we will draw her to our side and kill her friends – except the Slayer and her sister."

"Why not them?" grunted Macnair.

"The First does not want the slayer dead until every potential has been murdered. Besides, I think that Buffy could become quite an asset if we got her to our side. As for Dawn, her performance at Elk Meadow proves that she will be powerful someday – a perfect addition to our collection," Lucius explained.

"I wouldn't count on Buffy coming over to the dark side, Lucius. She's been fighting evil for over seven years – the most you're going to do is just piss her off and send her after you."

Lucius gave the young witch a sharp look. She had truly been a treasure to find, once he had began exploring Sunnydale and learned that a former Death Eater had made it her home. It was laughingly simple for him to take her anger against Willow in order to get her on his side. For the sake of her revenge and her hunger to learn dark magic she had quickly become his eager student. Once she had received her own wand that he had procured for her she had become quite the model student as well. She had impressed Lucius so much that he was considering letting her survive the final battle.

"Amy, I understand that you know these people very well – in fact your information has made the difference in our ventures here – but do not underestimate me, my dear. I will bring Buffy over." His lips curled into a hungry smile. "Yes, soon I will have Willow, Buffy, and Dawn all serving me – in every way possible."

Sirius jumped as he saw a flash of light in the backyard while he was feeding Buckbeak. "Got another potential!" he shouted inside as he made his way to the poor girl who was currently spilling the contents of her stomach.

"Hey there! Welcome to Sunnydale, home of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. How are you feeling?" he asked her kindly as he did a simple healing spell to calm her upset stomach and handed her a conjured towel.

_"Ay, no estoy bien,_" moaned the dark-skinned girl with black ringlets that cascaded over her shoulders. "¿_Qué pasó? Donde estoy? Y quien eres?_" she asked with wide eyes as she took two steps away from him.

"Oh Merlin, another one who doesn't speak the Queen's English," he muttered under his breath. Then he remembered that he lived with multiple individuals who butchered the Queen's English on a regular basis. "_Un momento,_" he spoke to the girl – using all the Spanish he pretty much knew.

With a flick of his wand he incanted, "_Narro Meus Lingua!_" and started over again. "Sorry about that. Can you understand me now?" She nodded. "Great! I'm Sirius and you're in Sunnydale, California. Let me guess, you're Issa Gomez?" She nodded again, her eyes growing in size as she looked around the backyard.

"Heya!" greeted Dawn as she jogged into the backyard. "I'm Dawn," she greeted as she stuck out a hand.

"Hello, I'm Issa," the girl replied and immediately looked surprised at speaking in another language. "How am I not speaking Spanish now?"

"Oh, Sirius is a wizard and found a nifty spell for allowing people to understand and speak English. Trust me, it has made things _so_ much easier, right Sir?" Dawn said brightly with a sideways glance.

"Ah yes, having all thirty-two potential slayer teenagers all speaking the same language has only increased the amount of gossiping and shouting in this household," Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Thirty-two?" Issa glanced at the Summers' house. "Will we all fit in there?"

Dawn laughed and nodded. "Wait until you step inside. Come on, I'll introduce you to everyone. Oh, and when you meet Luna don't be surprised if she asks you about _El Astado Gato_. Ever since she heard there was a girl from Peru coming here she's been going crazy with the idea of possibly hearing a first hand account of this creature."

Issa raised her eyebrows and smirked in amusement as Dawn dragged the girl into the house.

Sirius grinned and went back to feeding Buckbeak. As he was playing a game of catch with the hippogriff, using a football that had seen better days, he felt a pair of arms wrap themselves around his waist.

"Hey," murmured Willow, her voice soft against his back.

He grinned and turned around to pull her against his chest. "Hey yourself. I take it you had a good night's sleep?"

She looked up at him with shining green eyes. "Yup! Nightmare-free for a week now, all thanks to your cute little dreamcatcher."

"Hey, it's not cute!" he pouted. "Men don't make cute things."

She tossed him a sly grin. "Alright, it's precious, how's that?"

"Precious? Do I look like some hairless dude after a ring?" he asked with a wry smile. It was amazing how after six months he had been brought up to speed on an amazing amount of Muggle pop culture – mostly all thanks to the combined forces of Xander and Dawn, along with a plentiful amount of pizza.

"Naw, you're still my dirty-hot Aragorn man," she teased.

Sirius just winked and scooped her up into his arms. "Well, if I'm so dirty do you want to bathe me?" he said with a grin.

A smile broke out on Willow's face – Merlin, he loved that he could make her smile that way. He still remembered when he first found her crying inside her cottage kitchen and how much, even then, he had wanted to bring her some happiness.

"Well, I'm not sure," she said in a wondering tone. "I mean, I have so much to do today. First I need to alphabetize the library and then color-coordinate my closet."

He spun her in a dizzying circle as she squealed with laughter. "Stop!" she giggled.

Sirius did as she told and set her on her feet, laughing heartily as she stumbled like a drunken fan after a Quidditch game. "You are the devil, you know that?" she said with a mock-glare.

"Who me?" he asked innocently with wide eyes. "I am a perfect angel."

Willow snorted. "Yeah, right. Tell that to Buffy. You know she's already plotting with Dawn and Luna on how to get you back."

"Hey now," Sirius said as he threw up his arms in protest. "That wasn't really my fault. I mean, Buffy was giving one of her doom and gloom speeches and when I told her that she needed to 'chill out' and not stress so heavily, and she said she didn't, I just felt compelled to stick her inside a giant ice cube." Sirius grinned and shrugged his shoulders.

"Uh-huuuh. You are so lucky that Remus managed to calm her down," Willow rolled her eyes, but he noticed that the edges of a smile peeked out.

"Willow, you know as well as I do that Buffy has been more militant lately. I'm just trying to get her to relax and take a moment to laugh every once in a while. And hey, if that happens from re-opening our pranking war then I am all for that," he said seriously.

"Buffy can't help it, she's the leader," Willow frowned. "She does what she has to."

"Yeah, she is the leader. But the leader also needs to live a little. That's what I liked so much about Dumbledore. He may be crazy, he may be a manipulative s.o.b.; but the man knows how to make a good joke. He helped lessen the madness of the war that way." Sirius grabbed Willow's hands and drew her closer to him. "We may be facing a battle but its important that we don't lose sight of why we fight."

Willow leaned her head against his chest. "I know, you're right," she sighed. "She does take to being alone a lot or hanging out with Spike."

"You don't think they're…" Sirius trailed off, unwilling to complete that sentence.

"No, she's not. We've talked about Spike. I don't quite understand but I do get that he, on some dark and twisted level, understands her and she needs that. He can give us something we quite can't – although I hate that."

"Well that Luke bloke is coming by today to meet and discuss the First. Maybe that'll put Buffy in a better mood," Sirius shrugged.

"Yeah right," Willow snorted as she glanced up at him. "Buffy can't stand that guy – he might be a good guy but can you say pompous much?"

Sirius just raised his eyebrows and smiled smugly.

"No! Noo. She's not into him," Willow argued.

"Listen, all I'm saying is Buffy needs to chill out and probably get laid. Obviously Spike is no good for her so she may as well go for the wizard."

"Ew, Sirius! Don't talk about Buffy needing to get laid. That's so, ugh, guy-ish of you," she scolded as he laughed.

"Anyways, I'm off to go grocery shopping with Xander and Dawn. It seems like more people are starting to leave Sunnydale so we want to stock up," Willow informed him. "Want to come?"

"Hmm." Sirius glanced at Buckbeak who was giving him an impatient look. "No, that's fine. With everything going on I haven't spent much time with Buckbeak so I'm going to stay out here for a while. Plus, I still cannot believe how great March weather is in California!"

"Guess sixty-seven degrees beats forty and rain, huh?" Willow giggled.

"Damn straight. It's why I love living here."

"And that's the only reason why?" Willow asked with a smirk.

"There might be another," he said softly as he pulled her up for a kiss. It was soft and the heat from it seared his heart – by gods, he loved her.

* * *

Amy Madison was nervous. It was one thing to secretly tell Lucius Malfoy everything she knew about Willow, Buffy, and the others but it was another thing to make an open play. She wasn't stupid – Willow _was_ the most powerful witch in the world and Buffy was probably the best slayer to have ever lived. In no way did she want them pissed at her.

But at the same time… She had a role to play.

It almost seemed surreal now to think of how she had gotten involved in this new world. One day she was walking home from a Campus Wiccans meeting when a gorgeous older man with long platinum asked if he could take her out for dinner that very moment. It had seemed strange to her how he had just suddenly appeared but now she knew about apparation. Of course, Amy was lonely and he was attractive so she accepted. After a couple drinks he had led her on a walk around campus and began telling her that he knew who she was – that she was a witch and she was Cathy Madison's daughter.

Of course she had flipped out and had him magically suspended in mid-motion at his proclamation. But when she had calmed down he told her that he was a wizard and produced several spells with his wand. When he had told her that it was her birthright to _also_ become a wand user like him, she had offered to do anything to learn – the potential power that awaited her was too great of a temptation.

Doing anything to learn involved her moving out of her dad's house and into her mother's old one, letting Lucius and his fellow Unspeakables/former Death Eaters lodge there, and to help Lucius spy on Willow and the others.

All in all, really not a raw deal – especially considering the fact that Willow, aka a powerful witch who does resurrection spells, let her rot in a cage for three years. Not to mention, Amy _hated_ how Willow had almost destroyed everything – literally! – but never received a punishment.

Well she was going to give her a punishment. Soon Holier-Than-Thou Willow would be one of them – and everything would run full circle.

Walking to the backyard of the Summers' house – some lanky girl named Amanda let her in – Amy pasted a smile on her face. She was still unsure about Lucius' entire plan but Amy would do what she needed to do.

After all, that was the apparently the way her family did business – wasn't it?

* * *

"Nice one!" Sirius chuckled when Buckbeak failed to catch the football in his mouth as he flew around the backyard. The hippogriff squawked in irritation and flapped his wings hard enough to send a powerful gust of air Sirius' way.

"Blimey, so touchy, aren't you?" Sirius grumbled as he almost fell backwards.

"Careful! It's probably not smart to anger a hippogriff," giggled a female voice behind him. He turned to see that Amy was walking into the backyard with a bright smile on her face.

Sirius had to admit, the jury was out on Amy. He absolutely disliked Kennedy with the burning intensity of a thousand burning suns – but Amy wasn't too bad. Still, he didn't really trust her since she was such a good friend of Kennedy's.

"You said it," Sirius agreed easily. "By the way, Willow's gone. Should be back in an hour or so if you're looking for her."

"Oh, really? That sucks. What time is it, do you know?" Amy asked him.

Sirius smiled and shrugged. "Sorry, I never carry a watch anymore."

Amy grinned. "That's okay. Normally I'm like that too. I did pick up this cool pocket watch at a flea market last weekend but I have no idea how to start it. Wanna take a look?" She pulled out a golden pocket watch on a heavy chain and handed it to him. Sirius' eyes narrowed as he took a look at the thick Roman numerals that lined the face of the watch. The time read 9:59 and the seconds hand was slowly ticking its way towards the number twelve.

"Hmm, it looks like it is working, Amy. Maybe when you were carrying it the watch jarred lose and began ticking again," he mused.

"Are you sure?" she asked – and for a second Sirius was taken aback by her strange smile. He gave the watch another look. "No, it works fi-" As the seconds hand hit the number twelve he suddenly had a strange feeling.

"Amy, what's-" but he didn't finish his sentence. He saw Amy hit Buckbeak with a spell and a powerful force jerked Sirius around his navel.

Seconds later he was deposited on a hard concrete floor. "What the bloody hell?" he swore as he lifted his head up. Glancing around him he saw that he was in a warehouse of sound sort and outside he heard the crash of waves.

"Welcome, Sirius Black," a dark voice greeted him.

"_Expelliarmus!_" shouted a cruel and high-pitched female voice as he jumped up and yanked out his wand. A second later he heard a third male voice and found himself strapped to a high-back chair.

"Tsk, tsk, Black. Didn't your mother Walburga teach you better? It's quite rude to pull your wand out at a social function," the first voice chastised him in a menacing tone.

"Show yourselves!" Sirius snarled angrily as his eyes darted around the shadow-filled empty warehouse.

Three figures in black robes slid from the shadows like serpents on the prowl. They lifted up their hoods and Sirius was stunned for a moment. He remembered the rumors that Alecto Carrow had been a Death Eater and the other man looked vaguely familiar as well – was that Waldon Macnair? Sirius thought that he was the man charged with executing Buckbeak.

However, Sirius was not very surprised to see the central standing figure. "Lucius Malfoy," he spat.

Lucius performed a formal bow. "At your service," he said with a wicked smile. "Now, Sirius, allow me to welcome you in the best way we know how."

Sirius struggled against the thick metal chains that strapped him to the chair, but it was no use. He was defenseless.

"CRUICIO!"

* * *

Willow, Xander, and Dawn were at the Sunnydale Super-Value laughing and sampling some hummus dip when Willow felt a sharp pain run the length of her body. She shrieked out loud and fell to the floor as Dawn and Xander rushed to her in frantic concern.

"Will? Will, you okay?" Xander asked as he held her head carefully – he had heard her smack it on the linoleum tile.

Gasping in pain, she made eye contact with Xander. "I- I don't know what happened," she panted.

"Why did you fall?" Dawn asked as she knelt on the other side of Willow.

"Something," Willow frowned as she searched for where the pain came from. She bit her lip hard enough to draw blood and stared at her them in shock.

"Something's happening to Sirius."

* * *

**A/N:**

So… How many people guessed that Amy was a bad girl?

And we're getting to some exciting parts… Exciting enough for me to toss out so many chapters in a row so hopefully you likey that :)

Review, please!

*"Narro Meus Lingua!"—Latin according to my free online dictionary for 'speak in my tongue'

*"Ay, no estoy bien,…¿Qué pasó? Donde estoy? Y quien eres?"—Oh, I don't feel good… What happened? … Where am I? … And who are you?

* El Astado Gato—The Horned Cat. Eh, just something I made up that has an amusing mental picture ;)


	61. A Dash of 'Crucio' & A Drop of Polyjuice

**A Dash of 'Crucio' & A Drop of Polyjuice**

* * *

"We have to go – _now_!" Willow shouted as she stood shakily to her feet, with both Xander and Dawn holding an arm.

"What's happening to him?" Dawn asked in a worried voice as they began heading to Xander's truck.

Willow tried searching for him again but she came up with nothing. "I don't know," she confessed as she tried to hold back tears. "I just got an incredible blast of pain for a moment and knew that Sirius was being hurt. But now it's gone – I can't find that connection to him anymore."

"I'll call Buffy," Xander said as he opened the car door for Willow. "We'll see if Sirius is at the house or where he was last seen."

Dawn slid next to Willow in the cab seat and grabbed her hand. "It's going to be okay, Will."

Blinking back tears, she shook her head. "I hope so, Dawnie. I felt a powerful dark magic – those Unspeakables must have gotten him. That damn Lucius Malfoy," she growled. "He's behind this. To think that I spoke to him in Hogsmeade."

Dawn just laid her head on Willow's shoulder – Willow knew the girl loved Sirius like any other Scooby.

"Okay, is Sirius there?" Xander asked into the phone as he started up the engine.

"Gimme the phone," Dawn ordered. "No driving and talking about big bad evil at the same time." She held out her hand expectantly while Xander rolled his eyes and handed her the phone.

"Buffy? Yeah, it's me. Okay, look all over that house. It's likely Sirius isn't there but we need some clues as to where the heck he went."

"Last place I saw him was in the backyard with Buckbeak," Willow offered in a reserved tone as her mind imagined the worst possible things that could be happening to Sirius.

"Did you hear that? Yeah, check the backyard," Dawn said. A few minutes later Buffy got back on the line and began speaking. "Buffy says that Buckbeak is passed out in the backyard – she couldn't wake him – and there's no one else," Dawn informed them.

"Tell her to leave the area. I'll do some magical CSI-type test to determine if he was taken from there or at least what flavor of magic was used," Willow stated in a crisp voice. Her mind was racing with ideas so she wasn't that engaged in what Dawn was saying.

The Unspeakables had Sirius – that was the only possibility. And after they interrogated Goyle it was clear that they were working with the First. But why? Why would the First work with British magical spy dudes and why the heck would the First be after Sirius? It just didn't make any sense. Was the First just looking to piss off Buffy and at the same time help the Unspeakables capture Sirius so they could sic a dementor at him?

Oh, goddess. Willow's throat constricted with a new worry. What if they had dementors with them? What if that amazing amount of pain she felt was the dementor sucking out Sirius' soul?

Her heartbeat began to race and she felt that all too familiar swell of anger within her; that dark part of her that was just waiting to lash out. Willow swallowed that anger and took several deep breathes. She had worked too hard to fall back now. No, if she wanted to save Sirius she would need a clear head to think.

And at least, a part of her tried to tell herself, if the dementors did suck out Sirius' soul she could easily get it back. After all, she was no stranger to finding souls and putting them back where they belonged.

"We're here," Xander said as the car rolled to a stop.

Willow nodded and practically raced to the front door, where she was greeted inside by the sight of numerous worried faces. Buffy stood with crossed arms – looking relieved when she saw that Dawn was still safe as the girl came in after Willow, Remus was sitting and frowning on the couch with Anya sitting next to him staring at Willow expectantly, Giles was already playing his role of Research Man with a heavy text in his lap, Andrew looked to be on the verge of tears as he paced the living room, and even Spike looked pissed off at the prospect of Sirius being kidnapped.

"Ok, what's the scoop? Has anyone seen him since I left?" she asked quickly as she wrung her hands.

"The last time anyone saw him was in the backyard. I did a spell and it looks like a portkey was used sometime there in the last thirty minutes. Buckbeak was knocked unconscious with some spell, but I am unsure what," Remus told her as his jaw clenched tightly.

"A portkey?" Willow asked in surprise. "But how the heck would a portkey get here? Who gave it to him?"

"Quite frankly we're not sure. Remus is not an expert on wizarding transportation devices so I've been looking in this book you lot picked up in Portland to see if someone could have used some summoning device to send it to Sirius," Giles explained as he looked up from his book.

"Otherwise, it means that someone gave it to him," Buffy said darkly.

"All because of the two-faced spy," Willow recounted the prophecy that Luke's Aunt Sophia had given. "Someone set up Sirius." The realization made her blood boil and she had to grit her teeth to not give in to accessing her well of power.

"But who would be bloody stupid enough to kidnap the lover of a powerful witch and who has Super Friends like you lot?" snorted Spike in derision.

"When I met with Dumbledore at Hogwarts his acquaintance stated that Lucius Malfoy had taken an interest in Willow and Buffy, and pushed for the Unspeakables to enter America. According to your conversation with that man, Goyle, then Lucius is the boss and in league with the First," Giles stated matter-of-factly.

"Okay, well obviously Sirius is wanted for murder and they are using that as an excuse to apprehend him, but why would he want to piss off me and Willow so badly – especially if he's all stalker obsess-y with us?" Buffy asked in a frustrated voice.

"Well gee, considering the fact that Willow tends to go all black-haired and evil when someone she loves is hurt, it's pretty obvious that this Malfoy character is trying to bring back big bad Dark Willow," Anya announced in a 'duh, isn't it obvious?' voice,

"Well if he wants Dark Willow, he can have her," Willow growled. The group looked at her in surprise and she shrank back in shock. "Sorry," she apologized quietly. "This just," she sighed. "My magic is requiring a lot of control right now."

"See?" Anya pointed out. Remus frowned and gave her a 'look', as did Xander.

"What?" Anya asked. "It's true. Willow's got time bomb tickage," she shrugged.

"Anya!" Remus said in an exasperated voice.

"No, she's not wrong," Willow said sadly. "I don't think you guys realize how tenuous my control is right now. Every part of my body is raging to find these guys and rip them apart."

"Willow." She met Xander's eyes across the room. "You can control this. Don't doubt yourself." She gave him a weak smile in return.

"Okay, wait, let's hold on and think before we jump to action," Dawn said. "The prophecy said that:  
_  
"He will make her his bride  
They will sit at the First's right side  
Her Spell will go unsaid  
Resulting in bloodshed  
The girls will all die  
All because of the two-faced spy.  
_  
"So if a spy did give Sirius the portkey then I bet the 'bride' who is supposed to do a 'spell' is Willow," Dawn surmised.

"Yeah but what spell am I supposed to do?" Willow asked in frustration.

"Well, it says that it is supposed to go 'unsaid' so I'm guessing whatever it is, it'll be bad for the First since otherwise girls – likely potentials – are gonna die. I wonder if that's why Sirius was taken – to get you to turn all evil and not do that spell," Dawn offered as an explanation.

"You might have something there, Dawn," mused Giles.

"Okay, well that's great that we're discussing this, but somewhere out there Sirius is getting tortured and maybe even dying!" Willow surprised everyone, including herself, by shouting. She clapped her hands to her mouth and muffled a sob.

Xander walked towards her and gave her a hug. "Willow, we will find him, okay? But you've got to keep your cool. If anything, you losing it is what this dude wants."

"Okay," she whispered, her voice muffled against his chest.

Pulling back, she took a deep breath and resolved herself to do things right. "Okay, I'm going to check on Buckbeak and see if I can wake him. Remus can you do a location spell to find Sirius? Dawn, you go get all the potentials in a room and ask if they've seen anything suspicious. If there is a spy it could be one of them or they might know about it. Buffy, I know Luke is coming today so give him a call to get here sooner – maybe his agents can help. Spike, go check out the demon haunts and see if you can get the scoop on these dudes– oh and take Luna with you."

Everyone seemed shocked by her take charge attitude and Spike's mouth dropped at her orders.

"You want me to take the little witch with me? To demon places?" he asked incredulously.

"I know it sounds crazy but we're up against magic users so you need one with you. Luna has been studying demons since she got here and she's smart and unafraid. She'll be perfect for you. Plus, she's way more diplomatic than Kennedy or Anya and she can play good cop to your bad cop," Willow explained.

"Huh." Spike chuckled. "Alright then," he agreed with a wicked looking smile – like he couldn't wait to take the odd duck of a potential out to see some demons.

"Buffy, Xander – start getting the weapons together," Willow ordered as she began walking towards the backyard.

"Preferably something very sharp," she muttered under her breath. Lucius Malfoy and his friends were going to pay.

* * *

Sirius screamed again as another Cruciatus curse hit him in the chest. His voice was getting hoarse and even though he knew he hadn't been here long it felt like forever. Lucius, Alecto, and Macnair had been toying with him for a while but now he saw a new witch make her way tentatively into the room.

"Amy!" Lucius greeted her smoothly like an old friend. "So glad that you could make it." Sirius hated how Lucius sounded like he was hosting a dinner party and not a torture session.

"Did you get out of there fast enough, girly?" asked Alecto.

"Yeah. Some potentials saw me leave but I doubt they'll put two and two together." She gave Sirius a hesitant look. "So I guess everything is going according to plan?"

"Indeed it is," Lucius smiled. "In fact, you've arrived just in time. Poor little Sirius Black is beginning to lose his voice." Lucius gave Sirius a pitying look and spoke like he was discussing a child. "And it would have been quite unfortunate if you missed out on his sweet screams, Amy."

"Yes, little one, it is your turn now," Alecto gave Amy a big grin as she gestured towards Sirius.

Amy blanched and her eyes darted from Sirius to the others. "Oh, I don't know," she shrugged. "I'm not sure if torture is my cup of tea."

Lucius chuckled. "Amy, your mother was one of the most vicious witches I have ever met. She and I reigned in Muggle torture while in service to the Dark Lord. Trust me, my girl, you have it within you."

She hesitated and Lucius frowned deeply. "Amy, I thought you wanted to be my student in all ways? Please don't tell me you're becoming soft-hearted – not after what that bitch Willow Rosenberg did to you?"

"Shut your filthy mouth!" Sirius spat, wincing as blood from his split lip hit the floor with a wet splatter.

Alecto, Macnair, and Lucius all began laughing. "Seems the Blood-Traitor don't like us talking about his whore," Macnair commented nastily.

Sirius struggled against his binds again. It didn't matter if he knew it was useless – he wanted to strangle them all.

"Ah, how adorable," Lucius sighed like he was watching a Sandra Bullock chick flick.

"Release me," Sirius growled. "Or you will pay." His eyes darted towards Amy's timid face. "Especially you, you traitorous bitch. And to think Willow thought you were her friend!"

Something changed within Amy and her expression shifted to one of outrage and loathing. "Friend?" she sneered. "If I was her _friend_ why would she leave me to rot in a cage for three years? If she had cared she would have fixed me sooner! Now because of her I lost three years of my life! Not to mention it's her and Buffy's fault anyways – if Buffy's mom hadn't found that Gingerbread demon and gone all Salem witch hunt on our ass I never would have needed to transform into a rat in the first place!" Amy's face with red with pent-up anger as she screamed and snatched her wand from a pocket.

"Excellent, Amy. Give into those emotions. Make Willow pay for what she did – through her lover," Lucius said in a soothing low voice as he circled the young witch with a satisfied smile on his face.

"Amy-" Sirius protested weakly but she was already raising her wand at him.

_"Crucio."_

A buzzing pain filled his body as he gasped in pain.

Lucius clucked his tongue. "No, no, my dear pupil. When you use an Unforgivable Curse you need to mean it." He gave her a dark look. "Now mean it," he ordered in a low tone.

Amy's jaw clenched as she raised her wand again. _"CRUICO!"_

White spots filled Sirius' vision as he arched in the chair; his screams echoing off of the walls.

* * *

Lucius Malfoy was very pleased. An hour of torture had already passed and besides the Cruciatus Curse he had been able to use a bevy of different curses that he had longed to perform for over a decade. He smiled to himself as he watched Amy deliver the Cruciatus at Sirius – yes, she had become a fine protégé.

It was a pity that he may not be able to keep her.

Yes, she had served him well and had potential but the real prize was Willow. He had already come to realize that Amy, along with Alecto and Macnair, would have to become collateral damage. He needed Willow to commit murder and lose herself – and who better to kill than her one time friend? The woman who had betrayed her?

Yes, Amy would have to go.

He, of course, realized that it would be foolhardy to sit and wait for Willow to come. There was no way he could confront her at the height of her anger. No, Lucius just needed to be there in order to pick up the pieces.

But first, he needed to insure himself.

"Macnair, step over here please," Lucius asked the Ministry Executioner as he waved him over to a small table out of view of Sirius that contained a vial of thick, green liquid.

"Yes, Lucius?"

"I need to leave – temporarily of course – because our Master has ordered me to meet with him," he lied smoothly. "But I realize that it is important that we take an extra precaution. You remember how I informed you that Goyle released my name to the Slayer?"

"Yes," Macnair nodded.

"That means they know I am involved and that unfortunately there is nothing I can do about that," he sighed sadly. "However, they do not know about you. Therefore, I think it would be best, in order to protect your identity, to take a polyjuice potion made from some of my hairs."

Macnair's eyes widened almost comically. "You want me to look like you?" he asked in surprise.

"Of course! Do you think I want them coming after you in case they see you before you can apparate away?" Never mind that Lucius was planning on enabling an anti-apparation ward before he left. "This way you will be safe, my friend."

A look of awe crossed his face before Macnair nodded. "Lucius, I don't know what to say. Thank you."

Lucius smiled and patted the man's shoulder. "Say nothing of it, _really_."

As Macnair swallowed the vial of extra long-lasting polyjuice potion that Lucius had boiled himself, he let out a deep breath of satisfaction.

Yes, everything was going just according to plan.

* * *

Willow sat cross-legged in the backyard as she meditated. She needed to do something because so far no information had cropped up.

Remus had been unable to find Sirius using a location spell and Willow had not been able to scry for him – which made sense if the First was helping Malfoy. When she had tried to find the First's lair her attempts had been blocked as well.

Spike and Luna were still searching – and now so were Buffy, Anya, Remus, and Xander – but no one had anything to report yet.

Dawn and Giles were interviewing the potentials together one by one in an attempt to find the spy. However, they were not being told until their separate interview what had occurred because they wanted to watch their expressions. A good plan but one that was taking too long, in her opinion.

And Buckbeak was still under a deep sleeping spell that Remus' spell reversal had been unable to break.

So now Willow was trying to meditate and speak to the earth in an attempt to figure out what was going on. Her nerves were fraying and she was struggling to hold onto her sanity. It didn't make it better that she couldn't figure out who could have been in the backyard with Sirius – since over forty people lived here and used the backyard frequently Willow had been unable to identify a specific signature.

And it was making her angry.

The only thing that did console her was that she believed Sirius was still alive. She couldn't pinpoint it but she just _knew_ it. And that gave her hope.

The hippogriff stirred next to her and she laid a hand on Buckbeak. The hippogriff made a noise of alarm and reared on its back legs. Willow stood up and held her hands out calmly. "Whoa, boy! Calm down! It's okay."

The hippogriff began making a frantic noise and racing around the backyard, as if he were looking for Sirius. "Buckbeak. Buckbeak!" she called to get her attention. The animal turned his eyes on her and gave her an expectant look.

"Sirius is missing, do you know where he is?"

Buckbeak let out a squawk of anger and Willow wished she knew what he was saying – why couldn't she speak hippogriff?

_'Everything is connected, Willow,'_ Amelia's voice from her training came unbidden in her mind.

"Everything is connected," she whispered. Yes! She could speak to Buckbeak just like she spoke to the earth when she meditated!

"Okay, boy, I need your help. Can you lower your head for me?"

Buckbeak gave her a suspicious look but he did as she asked. Willow splayed her fingers on each side of his head and closed her eyes. She imagined their connection and the door that opened to Buckbeak's mind. Tentatively, she opened it – and the hippogriff reared back in shock.

"Buckbeak! It's okay! I'm not going to hurt you." He gave her a suspicious look and Willow was reminded of how proud hippogriffs were – obviously he didn't like her venturing into his mind without permission.

Willow dipped into a low bow while keeping her eyes focused on his. Luckily, Buckbeak must have forgiven her because he followed suit and she spoke softly to him. "Look Buckbeak, Sirius has been kidnapped. Since you were the only person, um, creature out here I think you may have seen who did it. May I look into your memories and see what happened? So we can get Sirius back?"

He gave her a considering look but eventually he nodded and lowered his head. With a sigh of relief Willow repeated her actions and was pleased that Buckbeak didn't freak out again when she opened the door.

"Okay Buckbeak, just think about what you saw. What happened?"

The colors of the memory were off – cast in a unique sepia tone – but sure enough she saw Sirius playing catch with Buckbeak. The sight of him laughing and smiling tugged at her heart and Willow missed him terribly just then. In the next moment she saw Amy walk outside and begin chatting with Sirius. She handed him a watch, spoke some more, and suddenly the air around Sirius changed – like it, or rather he, was shifting – and next Amy hit Buckbeak with a spell. Then everything went black.

Willow pulled back in shock and her lips curled into a snarl.

"That bitch!" she spat angrily.

* * *

**A/N: **

What, oh what, lies in store for our dear Heroine and Hero, Dearest Readers? Next up, Amy is really going to regret her allegiance and Willow is going to struggle to keep it together. Plus, if there's time I may show some Spike and Luna action, lol.

…Oh, and hopefully Willow will save Sirius in time *grins evilly*

Review Por Favor!

And many, MANY thanks to the awesomeness that is everyone who has been reviewing! I love you guys :) Seriously, y'all are the best readers ever! This story has come a long way and I am greatly appreciative of the fact that it's been viewed over 80,000 times and has over 700 reviews. That is utterly amazing and I owe it all to you! Thanks for all the feedback and the inspiration – you have really helped to craft this story.

So, thanks :D

This is a long story & I would be kidding myself if you could remember everything you've read – especially those of you following since I first began posting in March. So here's a handy guide to various references for you:

*"When I met with Dumbledore at Hogwarts his acquaintance stated that Lucius Malfoy had taken an interest in Willow and Buffy, and pushed for the Unspeakables to enter America. According to your conversation with that man, Goyle, than Lucius is the boss and in league with the First," Giles stated matter-of-factly.  
- See chapter 34: Menslengua Demons, Snoozum Monkeys,& Alphabet Eyes

* Lucius clucked his tongue. "No, no, my dear pupil. When you use an Unforgivable Curse you need to mean it." – What Bellatrix tells HP in the 5th book

* When she had tried to find the First's lair her attempts had been blocked as well. – Occurred off-page in Ch. 39: The British Invasion, and it happened just like it did in the episode 'Bring on the Night" (s7.e.10)


	62. A Vampire & A Witch Walk Into a Bar…

A Vampire & A Witch Walk Into a Bar…

A/N:

Thank you to fairywm for enjoying this fic enough to rec it! 'Tis appreciated!

* * *

Spike glanced over at the pale blond thirteen year old girl sitting in the passenger seat of the red convertible that he had jacked from Giles. Luna Lovegood was a bizarre oddity to him. Right now she sat staring in deep thought, her blue eyes seeming to look at nothing yet everything at the same time. The little witch gave him the wiggins, if he was honest with himself. Her dreamy quality, bizarre interests, incredible attention to seemingly meaningless details, and odd sense of humor reminded him of Dru. Sometimes he wondered what Dru's last name had been before Angel turned her – and if it had been Lovegood.

Too bad vampires are all one-name Madonna types – he doubted he would ever know.

As he pulled into a parking spot at Willy's bar – home to the demons, the demented, and everything in between – he grinned in anticipation. One thing was for sure – he was going to get a kick out of exposing the little bird to a demon bar. After being hounded with questions on his life, origins, and exploits as a vampire, he was wondering how she would handle actually coming into contact with the 'subjects' she studied in those books of hers.

"Right then, here we are. You all set, 'lil one?"

She turned towards him with a look he couldn't decipher – but something told him she was just as upset about Sirius' disappearance as Niblet was. "Yes, Spike. I've got stakes, a cross, and holy water – plus my wand."

"Good," he nodded. Spike jerked open the door and slammed it shut; more than pleased to let all the little monsters run to their mommy now that 'Big Bad' was here. It had been a while since Spike had been in a fight and damn – he was craving one like a starving vamp craved blood.

"Don't forget – Willow just wanted you to be here as the magical expert. Leave the talking to me. If the blokes in there try to mess with you, don't worry – I'll get them," he reassured her as he paused for a moment to look at her.

"I thought Willow wanted me to play 'good cop'. What does 'good cop' mean, anyways?" she inquired in her soft voice.

"Eh, Muggle pop culture reference. Basically, it means one cop plays 'bad cop' and roughs up the suspects while the 'good cop' softens them up by being nice to 'em. Between the two cops, the suspects always spill the goods."

Her eyes brightened and she toyed with her wand – which was in its normal spot nestled behind her ear. "That sounds rather intriguing. What should I do?"

"Don't worry 'bout it," he rolled his eyes. Last thing he needed was the little witch getting hurt. "You're a bit too young for this. Just leave the talking to me and be on the look out for any wizards, alright?"

Luna shrugged and Spike took that as a sign of agreement. Marching to the front door he threw it open and strolled up towards the bar. He noticed that Luna was blinking her eyes owlishly to get accustomed to the dim light of the seedy joint. About eight vampires and two furry demons that looked like Chewbacca's ugly brothers were the only patrons. As usual, that slime bag Willy was scrubbing the counter furiously with a dirty rag at the sight of Spike. Not surprisingly, the entrance of Luna got attention from everyone in the room – likely wondering if she was a mid-day snack.

"Willy," Spike drawled as the beady-eyed man gave him a frightened look. "Looking for some information. On wizards. Hear of any in town?"

Willy glanced nervously at the bar patrons – who were focusing their attention on Luna – and said in a loud voice. "I ain't no snitch, Spike, so order a drink or get the hell outta here!"

Spike rolled his eyes at the man's obvious attempts to present himself as a tightly-lipped bar keep. "Right then. How about you give me a hint or I'll give you something else," he threatened.

Willy snorted. "Everyone knows you've got a soul, Angel-wannabe. I ain't scared of you."

Spike's nostrils flared and he yanked the front of the man's shirt hard enough to slam him into the counter. "Watch your filthy mouth! I ain't nothing like that sodding poof!" he growled.

Out of the corner of his eye, Spike noticed Luna clambering on top of a bar stool. "That's right. It would be a bad idea to make a supernaturally strong being angry with you, Mr. Willy," she said in almost a sing-song voice. "I've read a lot about vampires and even fought one. They are very strong and notorious for being cranky. Now please tell us if have you heard of any wizards taking up residence here in Sunnydale so my friend here doesn't get cranky."

Willy, still being held by Spike, laughed at Luna. "Spike, what is this? Take your daughter to work day?"

Spike glanced at Luna and realized they wore identical frowns. He supposed, with her light complexion and white-blond hair she did look like him a bit. With a snort, he realized that if he and Dru ever had a love child then Luna Lovegood would have been the product of their conception.

"Don't get smart, Willy. Luna here is a witch. Not just any kind of witch, but she hangs out with Willow – the Dark One, remember?"

Willy paled considerably. "Okay, okay," he said in a hushed voice. "Don't say I said anything, but those vamps over there were talking about some wizard guy they had a business deal with."

Spike let go of the man – who fell back from the sudden release – and stalked over towards the vamps. Luna, he noted with an internal smile, thanked Willy loudly in a sweet voice.

"'Allo there, gents." The eight vampires, who all looked to be stuck in the Grunge Era with their flannel shirts, glanced up sharply.

"What do _you_ want?" growled the, presumably, leader of the group. He had stringy blond hair and had an arm wrapped around the waist of a Courtney Love skanky wannabe. That is, if it was possible to look skankier than Courtney Love.

"Need to find a wizard. Got some info?"

"No," he snorted before he turned back to his friends.

"That wasn't a reqest," Spike stated between clenched teeth as he yanked the vampire up by his hair. Immediately all the other vampires jumped to their feet and were watching him warily. "Listen here, Kurt Cobain, that wizard took one of our friends – who also happens to be the boyfriend of the most powerful witch in the world – and we need to find out where they are. Now, I heard you're working for the ass and I need details."

"Like I'm going to tell you, traitor! You make me sick!" the leader spat angrily.

"Yeah, well your fashion sense makes me sick, but you don't see me getting all pissy 'bout it, now do ya?" he snapped back as he dropped the vamp back down in a chair. "Now, what did you get hired for and where is the wizard staying?"

_"Petrificus Totalus,_" he heard Luna say. Glancing back he noticed a vampire fall to the floor with a loud thud, as everyone stared at the teen in horror and amazement.

"Dude! What the hell! You just, like, messed with my girl!" exclaimed the leader in outrage.

Spike sighed and rolled his eyes again – why was it so many vampires gave his lot a bad name? You'd think the demons that lived in each vampire were the ones who failed Evil Super Villains 101. Honestly, who talked like that and had the gall to think they were big and bad?

"Good job, Luna," he gave her a proud smile, which she returned before she turned back to the other vamp.

"Your girl was just about to jump my friend. And before anyone else gets any foolish ideas," Luna gazed at each vampire in turn, "please remember that I am a witch and can do that again. And trust me – it is amazingly easy to stake a vampire when they are paralyzed."

Spike had to hide his surprise – so the little bird had a backbone after all.

The rest of the vampire gang sat down quickly with wide eyes. "Great," Luna beamed. "I think we got off on the wrong foot," she told the vamp leader in a genial voice. "We don't mean to cause a fuss. I'm Luna, what's your name?"

Spike wondered what the crazy bird was up to but after her little magic trick he thought her actions couldn't hurt.

"Bob," the vamp leader answered uneasily.

"Bob?" Luna hid a giggle behind he palm. "I'm sorry," she said off his indignant look. "I'm rather new to this vampire business. I thought the names of powerful vampires were rather eccentric sounding – like Spike, Angelus, or Lestat."

"Maybe that's because he ain't powerful," Spike muttered under his breath; fairly pleased that she considered him a powerful vampire - _and_ mentioned him before Angel. Ha, stupid sod.

Bob, who had been preening at Luna's compliment, shot Spike an annoyed look.

"Oh dear," Luna said as she glanced at Spike. "Don't mind him. He has a temper. Now, can I get you something to drink?"

"You offering?" Bob leered over the table. Spike swiftly rushed to move in front of Luna with a fierce growl. If that mutt thought he was going to hurt Luna then he had another thing coming. Call him a nostalgic and a bit of a softie – well don't, cause he'd drink out of your brain stem – but Spike liked the little witch since she reminded him of Dru, and could apparently hold her own against a bar full of vamps.

"Don't be crass," Luna chastised with a frown. "Now, how about a mixed alcoholic drink? Isn't that what is usually called for in these situations?"

"Sorry," Bob said, genuinely repentant thanks to the little girl's admonishment. "Gin on the rocks sounds good."

Spike wanted to laugh out loud. He'd bet anything that Bob preferred a low-class Natty Light beer than a hard-core man's drink. Stupid wanker likely was trying to look tough in front of them.

When Luna returned she slid across from Bob and gave him a significant look as she held onto his drink. "Now Bob, we are looking for a Dark Wizard named Lucius Malfoy. We believe he took a good friend of ours and we need him back. Now, what can you tell us?" she asked in a voice that Spike considered 'too nice' for interrogating demons. Luna was certainly taking this 'good cop' thing to the extreme – Spike just wanted to rip this guy apart.

Maybe that was what Willow meant when she said that he needed someone diplomatic?

"Listen, kid. You might be a witch but this guy's worst. I ain't telling you nothing 'cause if I do he'll do something worse, you get me?" Bob answered as he sat back in his seat with crossed arms.

Luna frowned slightly before handing Bob the tumbler of gin on the rocks. "Is there nothing I can do to persuade you?"

"Yeah, like having me rip off his limbs?" Spike said in a murderous tone as he stared the younger vampire down.

Bob smirked and raised the glass to his lips. "Don't count on it – but thanks for the drink nonetheless." He downed the drink like he was taking a shot and stood up – before his eyes bulged and he fell into his chair. As Bob began dry-heaving and smoke issued from his mouth Luna turned her wand on the other vampires – who were now looking mightily worried.

Spike snorted. "Knew you couldn't take the hard liquor without it burning your throat, wanker."

"Don't move," Luna ordered them. "Or I will hex you and Spike will be more than happy to engage in combat."

"Yeah," Spike drawled with a curled sneer, mentally getting a kick out of the crazed little witch's actions.

"Wha di you do ta me?" gasped Bob as he clutched his throat.

Luna pulled out a flask and shook it, allowing Bob to note that it was empty. "Sorry Bob, I gave you a 'Holy Water on the Rocks' instead. I am remiss about such trickery," she sighed, "but you see, you left me no choice." Spike was shocked to see Luna's placid features harden. "This friend of ours is one of my tutors, the beloved teacher to my first friend, the godfather to another friend, the boyfriend of a woman who took me under her wing upon my arrival, the best friend of the first teacher who has ever patiently answered every odd question I asked unto him, and overall a very good man."

She paused and gave Bob a considering look as he gulped down someone else's drink to cool his mouth. "I need information. _Now_. Because please believe my research reading Mr. Giles' books has give me plenty of information on vampire weaknesses – and what kind of Ravenclaw would I be if I didn't attempt to apply such newly learned knowledge?" Her eyes flashed and the corners of her mouth raised slightly.

"Listen lady," Bob croaked. "I don't know what a Ravenclaw is but I'll tell you everything! This wizard, he's shacked up in a warehouse by the docks. Wanted us to come by the Slayer's house tonight and attack the little girls that live there – said he wanted to distract the slayer while he did something else. I swear, that's all I know!"

Luna nodded sagely and turned to Spike. "You think he's telling the truth?"

"I think you put the fear of someone into this one here – so yeah," Spike shrugged with a laugh.

"Excellent. What do we do now that we have interrogated the subject?" she asked in a curious voice.

"Well, mate here did say he was planning on killing you lot tonight, plus evil undead and all, so I'm thinking we slaughter them," Spike told her, a wicked grin uncurling on his face.

"What? But I told you everything! And we'll leave you alone now!" promised Bob.

Luna sighed as she looked at him and the other vampires. "Spike, you know I am not so comfortable with killing but logically speaking, these vampires will just go on to kill others – and maybe even try to seek revenge on us or even tell Malfoy. So, logically speaking, I think we will need to slay these creatures."

Spike smacked his lips. "Excellent decision, luv."

And with that statement, all hell broke loose. Spike jumped at the six vampires off to the side – one was still petrified – and Bob lunged for Luna. She ducked and rolled out of the way barely in time and levitated the vampire to the ceiling. Spike staked two right off the bat and was engaging in every bit of martial arts and street fighting he knew to keep the other four from getting a good shot in. And of course, Willy was hiding behind the bar counter.

"You bitch!" Bob screeched to Luna as he hovered in the air.

"Oh dear. We're at the name calling part now? I suppose this is when Buffy says I need a witty remark." Then a slow smile grew on her face as she remembered some American slang and pulled out a stake.

"Bob!" she called up to him.

"What, you little pint-sized Wicked Bitch of the East?"

Luna grimaced. After all, cursing was uncalled for. "What's up?" she asked him.

"What? What the hell? Why you asking me how I'm doing?"

Luna giggled. "You're up, get it?" Then she levitated a stake right above his heart. "And so is that stake!"

Bob glanced down at his chest in alarm before the wood impaled his heart, just like Buffy had taught her.

Spike let out a cackle as he staked his last vamp. "Nice one, Crescent!"

Luna gave him a bemused smile. "Crescent?"

Spike laughed as he pocketed his stake. "Well, your name means moon, don't it? And considering, especially since you're a bit crazy and just short of a full moon, I think Crescent works, yeah?"

Her hand clapped to her mouth as she giggled madly – perhaps a bit more than a normal person would have but Luna was unique after all. "Oh my, that is quite a good use of humor there!"

Spike set a hand on her shoulder and guided the witch out of the bar. "Although, after seeing you deal with that vamp, I'm coming to believe that you are wildly underestimated by people – you really are a bit of a evil genius, aren't you?"

Luna smiled and said nothing – but her sparkling eyes said enough for Spike.

* * *

**A/N:**

Hiya there, dearest readers :) This chapter is short – so sorry – but it didn't fit into the next chapter very well. Plus, Musie and I are arguing about what exactly will befall Willow, Sirius, the Death Eaters, and others, so I wanted to give you something until I get a chance to crank that chapter out :)

And yes, this was my interpretation of a Luna who is operating on a ticking clock when someone she cares about is in danger of dying. I like to think it was quite logical, clever, and Ravenclaw, so hopefully you think her actions were appropriate as well. Plus, I had so much fun writing her and Spike so I hope you liked it too!

Please review, 'O' Awesome and Wonderful Readers!

*Kurt Cobain: Lead singer of the Grunge Rock band Nirvana. Died from suicide in early 1990s.  
*Courtney Love: Cobain's widow and lead singer of the band Hole.  
*Crescent: Don't *think* anyone has used that as a nickname for Luna – that I know of – but I just thought of it today and am quite fond of it now *grins*


	63. It's Hammer Time!

**A/N:**

**Reviews are the food of life for writers so thank you very much to the following awesome ffnet readers:**

gibby101, Miscellaneous101, saving juliet, Ryutana, LovettLestrange, GinnyMastraniCullen, Prustan, The Wandering Soul of 1014, mind liger, Roxie-Angel, Cloud Dancer1014, sweetypie15, dreameralways, Aria DeLoncray, OSAT, mightmon

A VERY Special thanks to saving juliet & GinnyMastraniCullen for reviewing nearly every chapter!

Thank you all very much for reading this story :) It is greatly appreciated and I hope to have it finished in a month… There will be about 75 chapters total so the end is approaching!

* * *

Dawn rushed down the staircase, taking two steps at a time, as Kennedy followed her. As she skidded around the foot of the stairs the front door opened with a burst; causing her to almost fall backwards onto Kennedy.

"Hey!" she yelped in surprise as Spike, followed by Luna, entered.

"Sorry 'Lil Bit. Where's Red? Me and Crescent have got news for her."

"Crescent?" Dawn's forehead crinkled in confusion as Luna just smiled serenely.

Spike gestured to Luna. "Tell you about it later, but just know it involves Luna, a vamp gang, and a special on the rocks drink. Now, where's Willow?"

"We," Dawn gestured to her and Kennedy, "we were just going to find her. We've got news too. I think she's still in the backyard."

Without another word both parties set out into the backyard where they noticed that, rather strangely since it had been sunny all day, sudden black clouds had rolled in above them. A chill breeze tugged lightly at their clothes and hair and the atmosphere felt heavy with tension. Willow was crouched near Buckbeak and her fingers were curled into the moist earth.

"Willow?" Dawn called out tentatively. "We have some good information."

"What?" Willow asked in a terse, deep voice as she focused on the earth below her.

Apprehension trickled through Dawn like a cold fall rain. "Um, well Kennedy just told me that she saw Amy leave the house a few hours ago and it looked like she was coming from the backyard."

"I know," Willow practically growled; still motionless.

Dawn shared a look with the others, who all seemed to share her bafflement – and unease. "You know?"

Willow's head snapped up and Dawn gasped at the hard obsidian pools her eyes had become; they glinted with power, darkness, and vengeance. "Buckbeak and I had a little chat. Turns out that two-faced bitch gave Sirius the portkey and then used an enhanced stunner spell on Buckbeak."

Dawn swallowed heavily as Willow refocused her attention back onto the ground. Turning her head slightly towards Luna she mouthed "Go get Buffy" and the younger girl slipped silently into the house.

"Okay, so the little rat-faced hussy is behind this," Dawn said nervously as she glanced at Spike and Kennedy – neither of them seemed sure about how to deal with one extremely pissed off witch. "What are you doing now?"

"Speaking to the earth; trying to figure out where they have Sirius. Unfortunately that means I'm in one hell of a pissing contest with the First Evil," she replied with gritted teeth.

"Well, jolly good news for you then, Red. Luna and I squeezed out some info from vamps at Willy's. Apparently there's a wizard hiding out in a warehouse at the docks," Spike told her with a wicked grin. "So we'll round the wagons and head out there, alright?"

A slow smile leaked onto Willow's face as she stood up. It scared Dawn to see Willow in this way – fueled by dark energy with black eyes and darkened blood-red hair that had yet, luckily, to blend into black. Her presence seemed so incompatible with her clothes, a long bohemian black skirt with a red peasant top, that it was almost funny – almost.

"No time," she rasped. "I need to get there ASAP and make sure Amy Madison and those Unspeakables realize just how bad of a mistake they made today."

"Willow, come on, you gotta stay true to yourself," Dawn begged as she gnawed on her lower lip. "If you get all bad magic mama jamba then you might not be able to come back."

Willow, who had turned to face Buckbeak, paused. She turned her head slightly and caught Dawn's eye. "Let's hope you're wrong, Dawnie."

"No!" Dawn ran forward and grabbed Willow's arm. "You can't go alone! They're bad wizards and you obviously are treading carefully when it comes to sanity. Let me come with."

"You're too young," Willow told her as she shrugged her off.

"Then let me." Willow turned and gave Kennedy a hard look.

"Why?" she asked curiously.

"Because you're my friend, Willow. My," she sighed. "I guess my only friend if Amy is working for them."

"But you don't care about Sirius," Willow reminded her; her wide black eyes pouring over the details of Kennedy's expressions.

"But I do care about you. And I know how much Sirius means to you. Plus, you know I love a good fight."

Willow nodded firmly and levitated both her and Kennedy on top of Buckbeak.

"Willow! Wait!" But it was too late. With a great flap of his wings Buckbeak launched himself into the air and they were gone.

"Great," Dawn muttered in annoyance.

Buffy rushed outside, followed by Xander, Anya, Remus, and Luke – who had arrived recently at Buffy's request. "Where's Willow?"

"Red went all black-eyed, and she and Potential Number One scampered off on the hippogriff to get Sirius and kill some wizards," Spike informed her with a grimace.

"What?" Buffy screeched.

"Well thank heavens at least she won't be destroying a business of mine this time," Anya stated.

"Where?" Xander asked, his eyes swirling with worry.

"A warehouse down by the docks, according to some vamps at Willy's."

"Dammit," Buffy swore. "We can't let her lose it again. Remus or Luke, can you appy us there?"

Remus scowled. "Unfortunately apparation is limited. I need to know where I am going and since I've never been there before I cannot."

"And I've never been there either," Luke added.

"Okay, let's load up some weapons and get into the car. Xander, can you drive your pick-up? We should be able to fit you, me, Remus, Anya, Spike, and Luke in there and the back part."

"No problem," he assured her.

"What about me? And Luna?" Dawn asked in an outraged voice. "We want to help Sirius – and Willow – too!"

"And you have, Dawn," Remus said in a smooth voice. "But trust me, if Lucius Malfoy is there, along with more of his former Death Eaters, you do not want to be around."

"Yeah, you got lucky last time with that Killing Curse, Dawnie. Let's not test that."

"But-"

"No!" Buffy told her vehemently. "Now come on guys!

* * *

Fury crashed over Willow like a tsunami hell-bent on destruction as she and Kennedy flew on Buckbeak. She couldn't _believe_ that she had been gullible enough to fall for Amy's apology months ago! And all this time that two-faced witch was playing her like a well-used violin. Willow felt like she was in high school all over again – stupid, poor loser Willow too weak to notice that people just used her. People like Percy and Snyder. Well she would show Amy – and the others. She would show them that they made a serious mistake in messing with the most powerful witch in the Northern hemisphere.

Teeth gnashing, she scanned the ground below. They were passing the Sunnydale Cinema and the ocean wasn't too much farther. Thank the goddess for Buckbeak – getting to the docks would have been a lot harder without him. Luckily, with their new mental connection that she had forged it had been easy to express where they needed to go and Buckbeak was eager to find Sirius. In fact, he had seemed even more eager after she had promised him that he was free to rip those wizards and witches to easy-to-eat shreds of flesh.

"Are we close?" Kennedy's soft voice drifted into her ear. The potential slayer had her arms wrapped around Willow's waist as she held on for dear life on top of the hippogriff.

"Yes," Willow smirked in satisfaction.

"So, what's the plan? We kill every single one of them? Or maybe torture them first?" Kennedy asked in a dark, excited voice that made Willow pause.

A seedling of doubt took root in her mind as she fought for control of her emotions. Kill? Torture? Was this what she wanted to do? She had been holding herself together for hours but finding out about Amy's betrayal had snapped something within her. But still…

"Willow? What do you think?" Kennedy persisted.

She chewed on her lip and narrowed her eyes as she tried to wrestle with her conflicting thoughts. "I- I'm not sure," she admitted. Even with that small admittance she could feel wisps of the dark magic leaving her body and her eyes lightening. Her world seemed to refocus as she realized how close she had come to repeating her mistakes.

"What do you mean you're not sure? Willow! Amy toyed with both of us and you know they're probably torturing Sirius right now!" Kennedy's voice was shrill with surprise.

"Well, I just, um," Willow shrugged. "You actually saying it out loud made me realize what was happening. I mean, would I like to kill these bastards? Heck yes! But that's how I felt last time, w-with Tara, and I don't want to go to that place again."

Kennedy sighed heavily. "I'm going to be straight with you, Will. I know our magic is different but did you know in plenty of Wizarding Wars around the world it is appropriate for the law enforcement to use Unforgiveable spells? We are dealing with cold-hearted killers – if Malfoy is anything like they've been saying – and trust me, they will not hesitate in killing us if that's what they want."

"There are other spells that can incapacitate them," Willow argued; noting that the docks were in view now.

"Oh yeah, and then they head into the custody of the Office of Secret Services, which goody for us," Willow could hear the 'eye roll' in her voice, "because they seem to be such top-notch guys."

"I'll make sure they don't screw it up and let them escape." Willow turned her head and made eye contact with Kennedy. "We go in there and take them out, but no killing. Okay?"

Kennedy scowled. "Fine. But I would really prefer it if you went all black-eyed again so you have a power boost going in. I don't want to get fried by an Unspeakable."

Willow promptly faced forward. "No, it's better that I just stay away from the dark magic – I can't control it."

"Even if it might give you the power to rescue Sirius and take them out?"

"Yes," she answered firmly – although Kennedy's question lingered like a ghost at the back of her mind. But there was no more time for talk because Willow had to concentrate as they flew above five warehouses.

"There," she told Buckbeak as they flew over the end one.

"How do you know?" Kennedy asked curiously.

"The dark magic oozes from the place like pus out of an infected wound," Willow explained with a grimace. "It's simple to identify now that I am physically here."

As they descended on top of the warehouse Willow shuddered as the cold tendrils of dark magic stung her skin. The texture of it felt thick and almost smothering; she had to take deep gulps of salty ocean-side air before regaining her focus.

"Now, let's go save my boyfriend."

* * *

He was burning.

Flames danced along his skin and each stiletto heel of heat pierced his flesh with a resounding cry. But as his lips parted to release that scream of agony he felt the flames lick the inside of his mouth. Soon he was choking; straining to spit back the fire. But it was no use. His efforts were in vain and he felt his body give himself up to the fire. The flames had evaporated his hope to survive.

As he shrank back down into his chair the flames, strangely, disappeared. Dimly he heard cackles and deep laughter near him but everything sounded as if it travelled to him through a long tunnel plagued by echoes.

"Now that one's a keeper," Alecto Carrow stated maliciously. "Oh, I have just been waiting to use that one again. It's excruciatingly painful but doesn't leave a mark on the body." Again she, for lack of a better description, cackled like the witches in Muggle movies.

"Let me try the Papercut Hex!" Lucius Malfoy said in a velvety tone of pure excitement.

"Should we keep pushing him too much? We don't want to kill him before Willow gets here, right?" asked Amy Madison.

Alecto made a noise of derision. "Please. These won't kill him. Destroy his mind, likely. That is," she glanced at Sirius, "if we haven't already."

Sirius' head lolled to the side to look at her but he couldn't support the weight so it dropped against his chest. Pain coursed through his body and each breath felt like it would be his last. He was only aware of the pain. Some were sharp like pinpricks, others were dull like getting hit with a beater, and some felt thick and deep; like his guts were spilling out.

Vaguely he tried to remember why he was here. Why was he being punished? Was Mother beating him again until he remembered to mind his manners and live up to the Black name?

"Sirius," said a soft masculine voice. It took great effort but Sirius saw a man standing in front of him. He was young, in his late teens, with midnight short hair, thick black eyebrows, and a cocky smile. Dressed in robes, he wore a strange golden locked with the letter 'S' carved on it.

All of this processing, of course, took Sirius at least several minutes. "Who're you?" he slurred through his bloodied mouth and swollen lips.

An eyebrow shot up in surprise. "Don't recognize me? Oh dear, it seems our Unspeakables have had a bit too much fun with you. I'm your brother, Regulus," he grinned.

"R-Reg? Why ya here?"

"You're in a lot of pain, aren't you?" Reg asked with sympathetic eyes.

"Y-Yes. Hurt…lot," Sirius gasped. "Why?"

Reg folded himself onto the floor and stared up at Sirius. "Why, it's your punishment, dear brother. You need to pay for your sins."

"My sins?" he asked, baffled. His mind was still too broken to comprehend much information and everything seemed surrounded in a thick fog.

"Well, Sirius, you certainly are not a model citizen. Let's see, first you told Severus Snape to go under the Whomping Willow where you knew a werewolf would be waiting for him."

Sirius was confused. "Who Snape? Wolf?"

Reg whistled lowly. "My, they really did a number on you, didn't they? Well, besides that, you also allowed me – your only brother – to fall into dark magic that ended up getting me killed." He leaned forward and sneered. "I know you're not getting a lot of this, but just remember that you're a worthless bastard who got your own brother killed – not to mention James and Lily Potter."

Those names triggered something within Sirius. "Family," he whispered sadly. "I killed them?"

"Oh yes," Reg chuckled. "And because you're so cursed soon your precious little Willow will be good as dead to you – soon she'll be back and darker than ever."

A face with red hair flashed through his mind. Sirius tried to grab the image as it zipped by but it slipped through his fingers. "Willow," he repeated dumbly. In his mind he began to chase after that image. Willow was important, he knew that much. But who was she?

Reg sighed and Sirius' limited attention drifted back to his brother. Grief crashed into him at the idea he was behind so many deaths of people he loved. He was a bad man. "I deserve it," he whispered sadly.

Reg gave him a beaming smile. "Now you're getting it, old chap!"

* * *

Willow leaned over the glass and peered below. The warehouse was mostly solid but a section of the roof was made of clear glass; most likely to allow more natural lighting for workers and save on electricity.

"Do you see him?" Kennedy asked in a hushed whisper.

"I don't know." It was dark in there and there was an abundance of old machinery laying about. Then, further down, she saw three figures – Amy, Lucius, and some unknown woman. Her fingers curled into claws at the sight of them – goddess, she wanted to kill them. Eyes drifting to the side of them, Willow saw something that made her heart stop.

Sirius was strapped into a chair and he wasn't moving. More gut-wrenching was the sight of blood speckled and pooled around him and on his clothes.

"Merlin. Willow, I think they killed him." Willow felt Kennedy's eyes on her but she was still too transfixed by the sight inside the warehouse.

"Willow, we have to get them now before they escape. And I'm sorry, I know you're trying to be all peace-loving yay with the Wicca, but these guys are evil. They deserve to die. Are you with me?"

Willow didn't think – she just nodded in agreement. Green eyes melded into black and Willow took a step back from the glass. Sirius was dead – or close to death. And honestly? Right now Willow did not give a _damn_ about controlling her abilities.

Two seconds later a huge gust of conjured wind peeled off most of the warehouse roof; except where they were standing.

"Kennedy – feel free to torture," she said in a throaty voice that resonated power. "And Buckbeak, I'm laying a shield spell on you but be careful when you're down there eating evil wizard flesh."

She heard Buckbeak agree with her – not to mention she could feel his fury at what became of Sirius. Kennedy tossed her a wicked smile. "Sure thing."

Throwing her arms out, Willow commanded the wind to lift and carry her above the two Unspeakables and Amy. The woman with blackened teeth had an eager look, Lucius licked his lips in anticipation, and only Amy was smart enough to look scared shitless.

The witch pointed her wand towards Sirius. _"Avada-" _

"NO!" Willow roared and the wand crumbled to dust. Suddenly the witch was gasping in fright.

_"CRUCIO!"_ screamed Lucius and suddenly Willow felt herself fall to the floor as a blast of mind-numbing pain hit her. Concentrating deeply she soaked up that pain in a reservoir of magic and then sent it back at Lucius. As he shrieked in pain, Willow stood up and performed an easy spell to clear her body of any residual pain.

Laughing loudly, she took in the sight of Amy waving her wand, frowning, and then running for the exit as the other witch began following her, all the while Lucius screamed.

Hovering over him, Willow laughed again. "Naughty little wizard. Didn't anyone teach you that rhyme in grade school? I am rubber and you are glue, whatever you say bounces off of me and sticks to you?" He only answered her with more cries of pain.

Nodding to Buckbeak, she gestured towards Lucius. "He's the ringleader so don't kill him but feel free to take out all your pent-up anger."

"And Kennedy?" she asked the witch with a sly smile. "Is it just me or is it drafty in here? Me thinks I should shut the doors." With a flick of her wrist the doors slammed shut and locked just as the witches were reaching it.

"Now it's time to play," she said with a wicked laugh.

* * *

Buffy, Xander, Anya, Remus, Spike, and Luke were arriving at the docks in record time, thanks to Luke performing handy traffic spells that gave them all green lights. Buffy, Spike, and Luke sat in the back while the other three sat inside the truck.

"Which one do you think they're at?" Xander shouted over the noise of the engine.

Suddenly the roof off the farthest warehouse snapped off.

"Yeah, I'd wager it's that one," Spike answered.

Xander slammed on the gas and parked as close to the warehouse as he could with all the various pieces of equipment sitting out.

"Ok guys," Buffy began as they jumped out. "We need to capture these guys which means we need to make sure Willow doesn't kill them. Xand?"

"Yeah?"

"Speaking of Willow – got any more kindergarten stories to tell?"

Smiling sadly, Xander nodded. "We'll get our Willow back."

"Um, that's very cute and all, but first I think we need to get past all them," Anya informed in a terse tone.

"All the-" the question died on Buffy's lips as she saw thirty Bringers emerge from behind the pieces of machinery. "Oh."

"Yes. Thirty Bringers with the sharp, sharp knives," Anya affirmed with an exaggerated nod.

"Well. You guys sure know how to entertain an out of town visitor, huh?" Luke said with an amused grin that soon turned deadly as he pulled out his wand. "What is it you Muggles say? It's Hammer time!"

Spike gave him a disgusted look; his dislike of the wizard evident. "No, you tosser. Bloody hell, I barely know pop culture and even I know that's over a decade old."

Buffy dove into the crowd of Bringers with her sword.

"See? No lame reference, just action. That's the way to do it!" Spike yelled over his shoulder as he joined Buffy.

* * *

And somewhere Lucius Malfoy was laughing as he realized his plans were carrying out to fruition perfectly. The Dark One was back – and Merlin, he loved the taste of ripe trawberries in the spring.

**

* * *

**

**A/N:**

Nervous yet? *smiles innocently*

Please review 'O' Lovely Readers!

* with the sharp, sharp knives—Anya did say this in reference to the Bringers in S7 but I can't remember the episode… I think towards the end… But it *always* made me laugh! I heart Anya ;)


	64. Duuuun Dun Duuuun Dun…

Duuuun Dun. Duuuun Dun…

**A/N:**

**To my ****U.S. readers**: Happy Independence Day weekend (7-4)! **To my Canadians,** Happy Canada Day (7-1)! **To my people of Europe and S. America**, have fun rocking out to the Quarter Finals of the World Cup this weekend! (Vamos Espana!) Oh and happy 4-month anniversary to this story! *teehee* (check out the posting and update date). Hard to believe I've been writing this for 4 months now... !

**Warning**: Character Death… In fact, I think one of the deaths is something quite unusual and I hope you find the humor in it ;) Of course, my own sense of humor IS rather twisted at times ;)

* * *

Amy and the other witch turned to face Willow and she could practically smell the fear wafting off of them. It had a bittersweet flavor that Willow found most appealing.

Amy raised her wand and pointed it shakily at Willow. "Don't even think about attacking us, you crazy bitch."

Willow raised a mocking eyebrow. "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me," she sing-songed.

"These words will," Amy growled. _"Cruc-"_

With a mere thought Willow snapped Amy's wand in two and impaled the witch in each shoulder against the plaster wall. Amy's head rolled back as she moaned in pain.

"That wasn't very nice, Amy," Willow sighed. "Now I suppose I need to question our friendship. Oh wait," her face darkened. "You kidnapping and torturing my boyfriend already did that."

She mentally yanked the broken wand pieces out of Amy and levitated both evil witches closer to where Buckbeak was playing catch with the shrieking form of Lucius Malfoy – the hippogriff seemed to have fun tossing the wizard fifteen feet in the air and catching him over and over. Willow immobilized both witches against the wall with thick vines and grinned. "Now, how about we play a few games?"

A moan from behind her drew her attention. "Sirius," she gasped; mentally shaking herself. She had almost gotten so caught up that she forgot… Goddess. Willow rushed towards his seated figure and laid a hand upon his cheek. Her dear, sweet, silly Sirius looked worst than when she first found him in that cave. His beautiful black hair was matted with sweat and blood, his face was swollen, and he was bleeding from wounds on his face and a deep gash on his stomach.

"Baby, baby, are you awake?" she murmured as hot tears sprang to her eyes. Pale and deadened eyes blinked open at her. "Baby, it's Willow? Can you hear me? I'm going to fix you up, okay?"

He frowned slightly and appeared confused. "Wil-low?" he rasped. "But she have red hair?"

Willow pulled a strand of hair and realized it had blended to black. With a force of concentration she willed it back to red. "See baby? All better now. It's me."

He grinned – which caused Willow's stomach to roll at the sight of his bloodied mouth and broken teeth. "Willow," he said gently as he gave her a soft look.

She wiped away the blood on his cheek and gave him a light kiss. "I'm here, baby."

Rising slowly, she gave Amy, the witch, and the still airborne Lucius all murderous looks. "What the _hell_ did you do to Sirius? And Buckbeak, please drop Lucius because I want him to coherent when he explains why he thought he could get away with torturing my boyfriend." Glancing back at Sirius, she told Kennedy, "Watch these three while I heal Sirius. That needs to come first – then we play."

"Whatever you say, Will."

Willow sat on her knees in between Sirius' legs and laid both hands on his chest. Silently, she ran a magical diagnostic spell to determine what was wrong with him. Numerous minor cuts, one major gut wound, a dozen broken bones, and several broken teeth – at least. Her fury rose – Kennedy had been right. These people _were_ evil. She drew up energy from the earth and pushed it into Sirius. With great concentration she guided the energy through his body as she re-knitted his open wounds and broken bones. Within minutes she had accelerated his healing until he had only bruises, but was otherwise fine. Throughout the process Sirius had moaned – the quick healing of broken bones wasn't exactly pain-free – and Willow grieved at the sound. Gently, she used magic to lift him and place him on a conjured cot in order to get him out of that blood stained and evil chair.

"Sirius, baby, how do you feel now?" Willow conjured a glass of water and fed him a sip; which he drank from greedily.

"Hurt no more," he shook his head in astonishment but his speech was still slow.

"That's right," she smiled. "We're going to get you home real soon and no one is _ever_," her voice deepened at the word, "going to hurt you again, okay?"

Sirius frowned. "But I deserve it. I'm a bad man. My fault people dead." He talked like he was only half awake and Willow was curious if he was hallucinating right now.

"Sirius." Willow cradled his jaw with her hands. "No one's dead. You're not a bad man. What are you talking about?"

His eyes met hers and Willow gasped at how distant and pained they looked. "My fault. Reg. James. Lily. Willow."

"But Sir, I'm not dead…" she trailed of in confusion.

Sirius glanced to the side. "He said. He said my fault." Then his eyelids drooped and he fell silent as sleep overtook him.

"Sirius?" What had happened to him? He seemed so… off. Of course, he had been tortured but something didn't seem right with his mind.

Wait…His mind…

Willow whirled around and grabbed Lucius Malfoy around the neck and threw him against the wall; luckily her greater abilities allowed her to harness the extra magic to do such an extreme physical action. As he slumped down she clutched his neck with one hand and pulled him back up again.

"What. Did. You. Do?" she hissed through gritted teeth. "Did you use the _Cruciatus Curse_ on him?"

Lucius gave her an oily smile. "Only 'bout dozen times or so. What's the matter, his mind not all there anymore, luv?"

Willow's mouth widened in shock at the utter disregard for Sirius that Lucius displayed. He had maybe broken Sirius' mind – and a disturbing memory of Tara's similar situation, thanks to Glory, weaved through her mind – and he didn't even care!

"You low-life, no good bastard!" she screamed. "You think it's okay to take away a person's mind; their self-worth? Let's see how much you enjoy your mind being stolen from you," she growled and conjured vines to hold him in place against the wall.

"What are you doing, Mudblood?" he spat as he glanced around nervously. "Alecto, Amy, get her!"

"Alecto, huh?" Willow appraised the witch. "Sorry Lucy-boy, but neither of them can help you anymore." Standing five feet away, she raised her index finger and pointed it at Lucius' temple. "But don't worry, this will be fun. In fact, I'm sure you'll lose your mind over it!" she laughed cruelly.

"What are you-" Lucius' words were cut off by his ear splitting scream that shook the walls of the building as Willow began slicing a thin line around his temple, beginning above his right ear. As her finger guided the magic Lucius' screams died down as she ripped off the top of his head and levitated his brain out of it.

Willow floated it in front of Amy and Alecto and gave them a superior smile. Amy was crying and Alecto was gazing her with, strangely, more wonder than fear. Kennedy was staring at her with admiration and a smidge of fear that Willow found amusing. And Buckbeak seemed to not care terribly much and was instead resting at Sirius' feet in order to provide comfort and companionship.

"Like that, do you?" Willow asked the witches.

"You are full of dark, delicious power," Alecto swooned. "It is so good to have you with us."

Willow let out a deep belly laugh. "I'm sorry – you think I'm with you? Where the hell did you get that idea?"

Alecto appeared confused. "Your darkness is so powerful, who else could better nurture that than our Master – the First? Certainly you wish to join us?"

Willow dangled Lucius' brains within a hair's width of Alecto's face; taking pleasure in seeing the woman recoil in disgust. Tossing the brains to the floor, Willow focused her attention on the witch.

"Lemme get this straight, Al – I can call you Al, right?"

"Of-of course, Dark One. Whatever you desire," Alecto cowered.

"Ok, Al. I take it you helped to capture and torture Sirius? And you guys were the ones who attacked us in Elk Meadow?"

Alecto drew herself up proudly. "I am."

"Then why the hell do you think that I would help you, you crazy bitch?" Willow snarled. "You almost killed my boyfriend today!"

"But, but he is weak! A weak Muggle lover and you are so clearly powerful," Alecto struggled to explain.

Willow turned to Amy and smirked. "What is it about these minions that they are always stupid?" she asked. Amy just looked away; shaking fearfully in her binds of thick vines.

"As for you," she said to Alecto, "I think an experiment is in order. See, your wizarding world has a whole bunch of traditional witch things, like broom riding. Therefore I can only wonder if its true about what they say."

"Say about what?" Alecto asked, finally realizing she should be afraid – very afraid.

Willow gave her a wicked smile. "If witches really do drown."

With several words she pulled in water from the ocean and had a wave topple through the ceiling-less building. She created a wall-less tank; the water kept in bounds by her will, and plunged Alecto into it. The 'tank' was twenty feet deep and thirty feet wide; far too large for Alecto to get by without swimming. Disappointingly, it appeared that Alecto did know how to swim.

"Bloody hell," Kennedy breathed in wonder.

"Indeed," Willow mused. "But it seems to be lacking something. Sadly, she hasn't drowned yet."

"Maybe you could throw in a water demon?" Kennedy suggested brightly.

"No, demons are bad news. Ooh!" her face lit up with wicked glee. "But going 'Discovery Channel' on her is a good alternative!"

"Going Discovery Channel? Is that something Muggle?" Kennedy frowned.

"Trust me, Ken, you have not lived until you've watched 'Shark Week'," Willow grinned.

"Let me out!" Alecto sputtered as she struggled to stay afloat. She looked rather comical, actually, with her robes raising to her armpits due to the water and her ratty grey underwear showing.

Willow bowed her head and began extending her arms and pulling back repeatedly in a wave-like motion as she spoke her incantation.  
_  
"Tethys, Goddess of the sea,  
Send your most ferocious beast to me,  
That which feeds off blood and flesh,  
For you I give an offering fresh.  
Send to me the Great White,  
And allow Alecto to feel his bite!"  
_

* * *

Xander swung his ax into the gut of the attacking Bringer and grimaced as the creature went down. They had taken out fifteen Bringers but it seemed that more had arrived; obviously the First did not want them entering that warehouse. He was already worried – they had heard several screams from inside. While he was happy that none of them sounded like Willow, he was nervous if she was the one responsible for the screams in the first place. After the events of last year, Xander couldn't lose Willow to that stupid dark magic – especially on account of some lame bodiless evil.

Glancing up he surveyed the scene. Anya and Remus were side to side as they alternatively threw curses, Luke was being ganged up by several Bringers that had him now using the extra sword that Buffy had brought, Buffy was fighting off three Bringers at once, and Spike just snapped the neck of another.

They had their work cut out for them.

As Xander swung his ax at another Bringer he almost missed the neck due to the strangest sight he had ever seen – and this was coming from a hometown Sunnydale guy.

"What the heck?" he gasped in amazement.

"What?" Buffy grunted.

"Um. I think – if watching Jaws and my many weeks spent watching Shark Week with Willow over the years have taught me anything – there is a Great White Shark flying through the air, surrounded by water, and heading for the warehouse." Xander gulped.

This was _not_ good.

* * *

Willow smiled smugly as the Great White Shark appeared above the water tank. "Ever seen _Jaws_, Alecto?"

"What?" the older witch sputtered in fright as she splashed frantically.

Laughing, Willow began repeating the musical refrain the was known to millions. "Duuun dun. Duuuun dun. Duuun dun-dun, dun-dun, dun-dun, DUUUUN!" she sang as the giant shark was dumped unceremoniously into the tank.

Willow's sharp eyes watched as Alecto yelled for help and began swimming in the opposite direction of the shark. The shark seemed confused by its new change of scenery but Alecto's flailing arms caught its eye. Soon it was speeding towards Alecto and snapped its teeth around her thigh and tore the leg clean off. Blood quickly spread through the water and the shark went into a frenzy.

Within several minutes there was nothing more of the witch.

"That was absolutely the best, most creative thing I've ever seen!" enthused Kennedy. "Great job, Will."

"Why thanks, Ken. Now, my dear Amy, are you feeling up to a swim at all?"

Amy's response was to glance at the red water tank and lose the contents of her stomach.

Willow wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Amy, gross. You'd think someone that tortured for fun would have a stronger stomach than that."

"I only tortured because Lucius made me," she whispered weakly.

"Really?" Willow drawled unbelievingly.

Amy nodded.

"Well, let's just double check, shall we?" Willow banished the waste on Amy's shirt and walked closer to place her hands on Amy's forehead.

"What are you doing?"

"Just having a look-see. Now, think about the moment when you tortured Sirius." Although Amy fought to not show that memory, the mere mention of it triggered the scene in question. After Willow watched Amy spew hateful words and perform an Unforgiveable Curse on Sirius, she stepped back in disgust and slapped the witch.

"It's not my fault you were a rat for three years," she hissed.

"Right. Like you couldn't have figured it out?" Amy snapped.

Her anger rose like gasoline thrown on a bonfire. "You arrogant, self-righteous witch! You have no idea what it was like for me – I tried! And sorry, but I was also dealing with creepy cyborgs and hell goddesses too! It's not my fault that you were stupid enough to turn yourself into a rat without a reversal spell! You think for that you're allowed to torture Sirius and try to hurt me? Oh, no – you've got another thing coming. Ken?"

"Yeah?"

"What do you think I should do with our last captor?"

Kennedy grinned. "Something painful."

Willow laughed gaily as a funny thought struck her mind. "I think I have an appropriate punishment."  
_  
"Rat you were and rat you are,  
Your karma didn't take you far.  
Your decision to be the two-faced spy,  
Clearly requires you to die.  
So I summon the king of traps,  
A fitting end, prayhaps."  
_  
"What?" Amy gasped as a twenty foot long mousetrap appeared in the room.

"Everyone good?" Buffy shouted as she stuck her sword into her final Bringer.

"Yeah," they chorused.

"Good," she sighed; weary beyond belief. Running up to the warehouse door – she hoped they could get to Willow before anything too bad happened – she yanked on it with all her strength.

And then stared at the still-closed door. "Um, this won't budge," she informed her friends. Well her friends and Luke, who was still the somewhat shady yet friendly wizard guy – who was, okay, fairly attractive and occasionally funny… And, correct that. Her friends plus Luke and Spike – because Spike would never fit into the friend category, even if he always fit into her life regardless of what he meant to her.

_"Alohomora!" _Remus said, to no avail.

"Let's try it together, Remus and Anya," Luke suggested. "One, two, three: _Alohomora!"_ But even at the efforts of three of them no positive results were yielded.

"Okay, there's our best friend and potential bad witch in there with a Great White Shark, Sirius, Kennedy, and potential baddies. We need to get in there," Xander urged.

"Thank you Captain Obvious," Spike muttered as he kicked the door. "Bloody hell!" he yelled painfully. "Did the witch cast a spell on this?"

Buffy sighed, remembering her previous experience with Dark Willow. "Probably."

"Willow, please, don't!" Amy begged. "I'm sorry, so sorry. Please, please forgive me. You're better than me!"

Willow gave her a long considering look but all she felt was raw anger and all she saw was the woman who tortured the man she loved.

"Bored now," she said with a sigh as she levitated Amy towards the mousetrap.

"Wil-low," rasped a scratchy male voice. "Stop."

Surprised by Sirius waking up and speaking, Willow dropped Amy ten feet away from the mousetrap.

"Sirius! You're awake!" she said with a loving smile. She pursed her lips as she contemplated the situation. "Just, ah, give me a moment, okay? And then we'll get out of here." Willow went to pick up Amy again when Sirius interrupted her.

"No. What they want. Want you to kill. Killing bad. Make you dark."

Willow froze where she was standing. "Sirius, honey, I don't understand what you're saying. Besides, just Amy needs to go and then everything will return to normal. Okay?"

"Amy was your friend. You kill her, things will change. You will change. Don't. Please?" He blinked his tired grey eyes and Willow noticed they began to shine less with the insanity and more with the lucidity.

"I'm sorry Sirius, but it has to be done. Amy must pay!" she growled. Why didn't anyone but Kennedy seem to understand that?

"No," Sirius said strongly as he pushed himself upwards off the bed and stood up. "Your eyes are black, Willow. You're in too deep."

She gave him an outraged look. "In too deep? I just saved your life! You would have died without my magic!"

Sirius shrugged. "Maybe. But I would rather die than see you go back towards the dark side."

"Leave Willow alone, she's only trying to do what's best for everyone!" Kennedy chastised the man.

"Shut your slag mouth, Kennedy!" Sirius growled threateningly. "You're out of this."

"Um, just for the record, I agree with Sirius!" Amy said a bit too hopefully.

"You have no say, spy!" Willow hissed at her. "And leave Kennedy alone!" she yelled at Sirius. "You just don't understand, Sirius. Justice must be done!"

"Oh, and you're the one for that?" he snorted as he began walking slowly towards her; seemingly still exhausted. "Willow, that is not your place," he told her in a peaceful, smooth tone.

"Yeah, where is my place? Barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen?" Willow retorted sarcastically.

Sirius grabbed her arms and yanked her closer towards him. "No," he murmured. "With me." Then he kissed her hard on the mouth and put every bit of love her possessed into it – hoping it would be enough to draw her back. She didn't respond at first but soon her shoulders lowered and she began kissing him back just as deeply. He pulled away briefly to look her in the eyes – eyes that were swirling with different shades of dark, but not quite black, green. "I love you. Please come back to me," he begged in earnest.

Willow's throat constricted at the sincere look in Sirius' eyes and his words. He loved her. Like how Xander had told her he loved her last year when she went dark. Where had she gone so wrong? All she had wanted to do was save Sirius! Her bottom lip trembled at the vague realization of what she had done. "How can you love me when I do such terrible things?" she asked in a small, tight voice.

A calloused hand caressed her cheek. "I'll love you no matter what, Willow. Besides," he expression darkened, "I am not perfect. Maybe that's why we're meant for each other," he smiled sheepishly; almost as if he was embarrassed.

A tear fell from her eye and Willow felt the darkness seep from her once and for all. Sirius was right – they did belong together. And if she wanted to be worthy of him she couldn't let herself stray into the shadows again. "For once," she gave him a small smile, "I think I have to agree with you." Willow wrapped her arms around his neck and dived into another deep kiss; seeking to ground herself, prove that Sirius really was still alive and alright, and simply wanting to escape from the world.

An explosion came from the entrance and they broke their kiss to look up in alarm as five figures emerged through the dust.

"Um, hi – cavalry here," Xander greeted sheepishly at walking in on Willow and Sirius kissing.

Sirius hugged Willow tightly – noting first that her eyes were back to their normal green – and kissed the top of her head. He was still shaky from everything and he was sure Willow was feeling the same way – but he knew that together they would be okay, somehow.

* * *

A/N:

Reviews are strongly encouraged and lovingly cherished. Please let me know what you think :)

Personally, my shark and my spells were my favorite ;) teehee, being evil is fun!

Coming up: Some healing and dealing + a trip to LA! ;)

*Shark Week – every August! Woo wooot!

*Goddess of the Sea: .com/greek/tethys


	65. Healing & Dealing

Willow sighed in contentment as she leaned against Sirius' back. They were sitting outside her old cottage – Amelia's cottage actually – and today was the first sunny day since they had arrived a ten days ago. It was quite fitting in a way because today was the first day that either of them had gone without a panic attack – the weather seemed to reflect their condition, perhaps.

Reflecting on the events of last week, Willow was thankful that Sirius' strong arms were wrapped around her; she felt anchored and safe. Last week she had… Well, she had made decisions that resulted in a constant burning feeling of acidic guilt in her gut every day. She knew, now, that it hadn't been _completely_ her fault, but it still made her feel sick.

After the others had stormed the warehouse she and Kennedy had been interviewed by Luke and Buffy. They had determined that Amy had been the 'two-faced spy' that Luke's aunt had seen and pieced together that, during their coven meetings, Amy had been doing some spell that weakened their mental defenses when it came to using dark magic. Kennedy and Willow had both experienced upsetting dreams and extreme tiredness after each of the coven sessions but didn't realize until it was too late that Amy was responsible for it.

Amy, of course, had refused to say anything and Luke called in the Department of Magical Affairs' Office of Justice. They had taken Amy into custody at their detention facility for serious offenders, Lowgate Prison. Apparently they didn't use dementors – they thought the British were morally ambiguous for their usage – but had other means in place to hold magic users. Willow had been tempted to ask if that was where The Initiative had taken Ethan Rayne but she had forgotten before they left.

The bodies of Lucius Malfoy and Alecto Carrow – which in her case was just a hand – were also take by DMA and there had been a push from Luke's boss, Roberta Xerth, to potentially take Willow into custody. Luckily Buffy had threatened Luke with crushing certain favorite body parts so she was never questioned regarding her actions – plus, it helped that Secretary Asp had apparently given Luke permission to override that request of Ms. Xerth.

Of course there was no way Willow could have stayed in Sunnydale. Besides wanting to hide due to shame, she had to leave the evil that constantly emanated from the Hellmouth. Sirius had been emotionally and mentally damaged by his torture, so he agreed that a vacation was necessary. Thanks to some portkeys set up by Luke, Willow and Sirius had left immediately for England to take refuge in 'their' old cottage. Daily visits with Amelia and other coven members had helped Willow begin to heal from dipping in the dark arts, but she was often worried about Sirius.

Besides the three hours per day she spent with the coven, Willow was constantly with Sirius. He almost seemed to cling to her, like he was afraid she would disappear. Frustratingly, he had been silent on what he had gone through and it was driving Willow crazy. Even though they spent so much time together it was usually in silence or Willow showing him meditative techniques – which he was suddenly much more open to than when she had tried to teach him months ago. Now, while they did share a nice, companionable silence that Willow was fine with, she desperately wanted him to open up about that day.

She had tried to be patient – it was, after all, the least she could do – but his silence was beginning to worry her.

Sirius smiled at the sound of Willow's contented sigh as he held her in his arms. It made him feel good that she felt happy. This past week had been hell for both of them. Neither of them could sleep through the night due to vivid nightmares. At least once a day they would each have a separate break-down. For Sirius he would have flashbacks of the excruciating pain they put him through that nearly broke his mind. He was sure that if Willow had not gotten there in time and healed him, Sirius would have wound up in the same wing as the Longbottoms – Merlin bless them – at St. Mungo's, Sometimes the words of Regulus, that Sirius logically understood to the First but his logic often seemed to take a backseat to his guilt, would whisper in his ear.

Regulus. James. Lily. Sirius _had_ failed them all. In a way, he had almost failed Willow. After all, if he hadn't managed to get captured Willow _never_ would have used dark magic and fallen off the wagon.

It was why he couldn't talk to her just yet. The guilt was simply overwhelming.

Sirius was thirty-five years old and he realized last week that he had done nothing truly worthwhile in all that time. In school he had fun – too much fun – and never really contributed to anything worthy. While he did do good work for the Order after Hogwarts in the end he had failed by switching with Peter as Secret-Keeper. Lily and James had died due to his foolish decision and poor Harry was thrown in with his stupid Muggle family. Then he had wasted away in Azkaban for twelve years and now he was responsible for Willow going bad again and being responsible for two murders.

His thoughts were dark and maybe rather melodramatic – Sirius was self-aware enough to see that – but they still rang of truth to him.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Willow asked softly.

Sirius stilled. He discarded an honest reply and opted for a light one instead. "I was thinking about how pretty you looked today."

Her back was to him but Sirius just knew she was blushing – he positively adored that about her. It was sweet and nothing like the girls he had dated in his youth; a welcome change.

"Sirius," she giggled. "No you weren't. You're all pensive-y, buster. What have you been thinking about?"

Sirius leaned forwards and kissed the top of her ear. "What? A fella can't think about his gal?"

She turned around to face him with a light smile on her face. "Um, I think a 'fella' can only think about 'his gal' in fifties-era gangster movies," she rolled her eyes.

With a lighthearted growl he began tickling her; setting aside his darker thoughts for a moment. "Make fun of me, yeah? We'll see about that," he laughed as she began squealing and gasping for breath. They wrestled playfully until Sirius was wedged in between her legs with one arm holding up his weight and the other tickling her.

"Stop!" she whimpered, her lower lip sticking out in a pout. He teasingly nibbled it; suddenly very aware that he and Willow hadn't really 'been together' since almost two weeks ago. At first he felt no desire for it since he constantly felt sick with his flashbacks, but now a sudden need had taken hold of him.

"Sirius," Willow gasped as she felt the need of his desires pressed up against her. He gently kissed and sucked portions of her throat and earlobes before claiming her mouth in near-desperation to have her. She moaned as she arched upwards and wrapped her legs around his waist.

"Sirius, are you sure this is a good idea?" she panted. "I mean, with everything…?" she didn't finish the sentence but he understood her meaning – after the mental duress they had both been under, was sex a good idea right now?

Grasping her chin, he gazed into her eyes. "Willow, I need you. I want to love you right now." And it was true. After all of his screw ups Willow was the one person in the world who was truly his. He was filled with a desperation to show her how much she meant to him and right now, he felt stupid thinking it, but his spirit needed her after being broken last week.

She examined his face. "Okay," she agreed in a hushed whisper.

He smirked. "Just 'okay'? My luv, you really do know how to romance a fella, don't you?"

She scowled. "Just kiss me, darn it."

* * *

"So how are things going, Will?" Xander asked over the crackle of the long distance phone call.

"Things are all gravy and smooth-like," Willow told him after a moment of hesitation.

"Gravy, baby?"

"Yup, that's the one," Willow reaffirmed.

"How's the, um, magic stuff going on?"

"Good," Willow sighed as her fingers toyed with the phone cord. "I've come down from everything, more or less, thanks to daily coven meetings with Amelia and the others. Plus, Sirius and I have started to mediate together. I think I'm better," she chewed her lip nervously. "I mean, not all better 'Look at me I'm completely Cured Girl!' or anything but I've got my power under control again. After examining me, Amelia confirmed what Kennedy and I assumed – Amy had been casting some spells on me that stripped away part of my control."

"Good! I mean, I'm glad to hear that it wasn't all you and, you know, stupid rat-girl is partly responsible," Xander said in a relieved tone.

Willow sighed again. "But it was still me, Xand. I killed two human beings in awful ways. I mean, yeah, flaying is bad. But ripping out a man's brain while he's conscious and summoning a great white shark to eat a woman are pretty gruesome. Not to mention I almost had Amy's neck snapped in a giant mouse trap."

A snort of – was that laughter? – came over the line.

"Xander? Do _not_ tell me you just laughed," Willow asked in an appalled voice.

"Whaat? Will, come on. Evil or no, that _is_ kind of funny. Taking out a former rat with a mousetrap? You're like the Dr. Evil of the Wiccan world with your diabolical plans. What you should have done was attach some 'frickin' laser beams' to your shark," he joked. "Actually, it is a shame the wizards from the Department of Magical Affairs had to send the shark back – he would have made a neat pet."

Willow rolled her eyes – Xander _would_ find the amusement side to her evil actions – but a smile did manage to work its way onto her face. "You are awful," she told him.

"This is true," he admitted; and Willow could hear the grin in his voice. "So how's your British partner in crime?"

Willow glanced at the backyard where Sirius was practicing some martial art katas that Buffy had taught him. "He's good."

"Wow, 'gravy' and 'good'," he quoted skeptically. "That's not bad for people who had to go through what you guys experienced."

Grimacing, Willow was tempted to hang up the phone. "Ok, we're not awesome. Things are rocky – but at least they are not as bad as when we first got here. We've had good quality time together but it's been crazy quiet. He won't talk to me about what happened but I know it's always on his mind, ya know?"

Xander was quiet for a moment. "From how you described finding Sirius I cannot imagine what they did to him. That's got to be hard to bounce back from. Remember when Angelus tortured Giles?"

"Yeah."

"He never talked about it. And sure, we were just high school kids at the time but that whole summer afterwards Giles was more thoughtful than he normally was as Watcher Man."

"Yeeeeah," she said as she remembered that summer. "You have a point."

"Have you tried to talk about it with him?"

Willow blushed. "Um, well I tried but then he distracted me."

"Distracted you?" There was a pause. "Oh. OH. Okay, gotcha."

Willow giggled into the phone. "Sorry that image is probably not as appealing for you as it was when I was with Tara."

"Ah, lesbians," Xander said dreamily. "You know, it was pretty unfair that I had a two hot lesbian friends who never invited me over for a cold, refreshing lemonade on a scalding summer day after I was all sweaty doing construction. Or fixing your cable."

"Xand-der!" Willow laughed and Xander joined her. Then, changing topics she asked how things were back home.

"Same old, same old. Got a couple new potentials thanks to Luke's portkeys. Gotta say, even though magic and I are – as Buffy would say – non-mixy things, I really am liking this automatic transportation thing. Things have been quiet on the front since last week, so no deadly battles thankfully. But things are pretty chaotic here as always. Between the dozens of teenage girls and various people arguing, I think I might have to run away and join you two in jolly old England."

"Who's arguing?" she inquired curiously as she watched Sirius' sleek form go through a punching exercise outside.

"Let's see. Dawn swears that Andrew stole a letter from Harry-"

"They send each other letters?" Willow asked in surprise.

"Yeah. Apparently they started a club named 'I Survived the Killing Curse, Nynah Nynah Nynah' and discuss magic and evil wizards and hell goddesses," Xander explained cheerfully.

"Huh. Interesting" Willow would have to file that away for later. "Who else?"

"Well, Anya ripped Remus a new one for refusing to hang out with anyone during the days around the full moon this past week – and every other past month. Apparently he's ashamed of his disease and is embarrassed to be around people and she just told him that he was being, I quote, 'pitiful and idiotic' and to stop being a 'whiny wolf' and realize there are worst things than being a werewolf – like being called as a slayer and destined to die at a young age."

"Ouch. Well, I agree with Anya that Remus is too hard on himself but I bet Buffy didn't like that comment."

"Naw, definitely not. But she's been busy with other things on her mind. Recently she argued with Giles and Robin Wood about Spike, so I don't think she paid as much attention to Ahn."

"About?"

"Same old, same old. He's a liability, could snap on us at any moment, blah, blah, blah."

"And you're saying he's not?" Willow asked skeptically. "Cause, you're really not a fan of the walking undead Scooby members."

"You're right – I'm not a fan," he snorted. "But I'm not stupid either. Even I can tell that Spike has a soul so he's different now – and it's permanent unlike Dead Boy. Plus, it makes me feel better about our odds having some more super strong people, you know?"

"I know," Willow answered. Last week had been a big deal but she was sure the First had more planned.

"So when you coming back?"

"Not sure. In less than a week. This weekend we're stealing Harry from Hogsmeade to come hang out with us. I think Sirius needs to spend time with his godson and it should do him some good."

"Alright. Well, we'll see you soon. Miss you, Will."

"Miss you too. Love you."

"Love you too."

* * *

Willow began to stir in bed and opened her eyes to see a dim shaft of light escape through the blinds. It was too early to get up, so why had she awaken? A soft sigh came from the corner of the room and she realized that Sirius was sitting over there. She rose silently and watched him for a few minutes as he turned the pages of the scrapbook of Harry that Remus had given him. His shoulders were tense and his lips were set in a thin line as he absorbed the pages.

"Sirius?"

He jerked up. "Willow? You're awake. I'm sorry, I did not mean to wake you." His face was taut with emotion; even in the shadows she could see that.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he sighed. "Go back to sleep, Willow. I'll join you soon."

She frowned; Willow hated it when he tried to act all 'tough guy' on her. Getting out of bed, she picked up the scrapbook and set it on the floor in order to nestle her way into his lap. Wrapping her arms around him, she set her forehead against his and looked into his eyes. "What's up?" she asked in a soft voice.

His arms encircled her waist and he gave her a light kiss. "Just been thinking," he said in a melancholy tone.

Staring into his eyes, Willow ran her hands through his thick hair. "What about?" she asked softly.

Sirius turned his head away from her and took in a deep breath. "Willow, you don't want to hear me prattle on, do you?" he asked her in a weak attempt to avoid the subject.

"I love a good prattle," she said with a small smile. "In fact, I encourage it. It helps my babble look less intense."

Sirius guffawed. "Oh yeah?" he asked with a raised brow.

Willow curled up closer to him and leaned her head on his shoulder. Her hand traced languid patterns on his Quidditch jersey – a Christmas present from Harry – and she gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. "Sirius, it's okay to talk about what happened."

"I know, I know," he said; but Willow knew he didn't really mean it. "I just," he shivered. "I thought twelve years in Azkaban had been bad. And it had. But those hours with those Death Eaters really rival for the worst experience of my life."

"What did they do?"

He shrugged. "Standard Death Eater fare, I suppose. The Cruciatus and several other pain spells that only affected the mind. But they also enjoyed the sight of blood and I'm not sure what those dark curses where – just that they ripped into me with wild abandon."

"I'm so sorry," she whispered.

"It's not your fault," he sighed. "They were after me from the beginning because of my escape. It was just a matter of time. At least my mind was so gone that I don't really remember much of what happened – except for in my dreams. Hence why I'm awake right now."

"I wish I could scare your nightmares away."

Sirius chuckled. "Being with you helps a lot, luv. More than you can imagine. If anything, I wish I could help you with yours."

Now it was Willow's turn to shrug. "They're getting better. Besides, after what I did I deserve it."

Sirius stilled. "You think you deserve it? Willow, that's crazy people talk."

Willow pulled back and looked at him in the eye. "Sirius, I murdered those two people. I went wild."

A calloused thumb gently runs over her lips. "Willow those two people were evil to the core. You think that I was their first victim? They've been torturing and killing since the initial rise of Voldemort. I'm not even quite sure if you can call them people, to be honest."

She shook her head with a frown. "What I did was wrong."

"Yes, it was," he agreed tentatively with a sigh. "You and I both know that murder is a last resort. But all you can do now is move on and become stronger from that day. I just don't want you to flog yourself senseless for what happened."

Willow bit her lip nervously. "Well, I don't want you to flog yourself senseless either."

"What do you mean?"

"I know we've talked about it before but I think last week may have brought up your guilt to the forefront as well. Sirius, I've heard you talking in your sleep – apologizing to your brother, James, and Lily."

Sirius' face darkened. "I don't want to talk about that."

"Sirius," she cupped his cheek tenderly. "I think you need to."

"No," he replied stubbornly. He stood up and gently deposited Willow on the bed. "Now come on, let's get some sleep."

"But Sirius-"

"I said no, Willow. I can't, okay? Not yet; maybe not ever. Now come on, Harry's arriving tomorrow so let's get to sleep."

Without another word he laid down and faced the wall and Willow just stared at him in frustration. She felt like crying – why wouldn't he let her help him? Tears lurked behind the corner of her eyes and she let them fall silently as she faced the opposite side of him. Willow _hated_ that Sirius was in pain. She hated it more than anything. At some point in their six month relationship Sirius' pain had become her own and her chest now throbbed with it.

The bed moved and Willow felt Sirius roll over to spoon her body. An arm wrapped around her waist and he nuzzled her neck. "I do love you," he whispered in a scratchy voice. "Just give me some time, okay?"

The pain in her chest lessened by his close presence. Time. She could do that. After all, for him she would do anything.

"Okay."

* * *

Harry Potter laughed wildly as Willow told him the story of Sirius ruining their first meal together where he caused water to boil over onto the stovetop. He, Willow, and Sirius were sitting in the kitchen of their cottage eating freshly prepared pizza for lunch and trading various stories – preferably embarrassing ones about Sirius. Thanks to a portkey from Dumbledore, Harry was able to spend all day with his godfather and Willow and he was having the time of his life. It had been over two months since he last saw them and he was reminded of how much he missed their presence.

"You laugh now, little witch," Sirius said with an arched brow as he waggled a slice of pizza at Willow. "But I know your weaknesses." Then in a stage whisper to Harry he said, "Harry, did you know that Willow has frog fear? That all you have to do is show her a frog and she'll squeal like a little girl?"

Willow smacked his arm and gave him a firm look. "You stop telling people that, Sirius Black! Harry," she shot him a softer look as she got up to refill her drink. "Don't listen to your godfather." She rolled her eyes. "He's clearly crazy."

"Crazy in lo-ove!" Sirius sung as he leapt up, grabbed Willow around the waist, and began swinging her in a circle.

"Stop!" she giggled. "You're only going to embarrass the poor boy!" she chastised between more laughter.

Harry grinned. He actually didn't care – he loved seeing Sirius so happy. He looked so different from when Harry had first met him at the end of Third Year almost a year ago and it was a welcome change. Harry knew that Willow was responsible for it and he felt a lot of gratitude for the witch. Plus, she was pretty cool and he kinda liked how she mother'd him.

"Harry? Do you want some more pizza? You know, you are kinda skinny; you should eat some more!" Willow said as she placed two more slices on his plate.

Like now. "Thanks, Willow."

"Aw, Harry isn't that skinny, Willow. He looks just like James at that age," Sirius observed as he bit into another slice.

"Really?" Harry asked.

"Oh yeah. Although I'm interested in how tall you're going to get. James was always shorter than me but then at fifteen he shot up like a beanpole. Of course," Sirius grinned, "I still ended up taller."

"I don't know about you Harry, but one of my favorite things about Sirius is his lovely sense of humility. Wouldn't you agree?" Willow said airily with a wink and a smile.

Harry laughed. "Oh, definitely."

"Hey! I will not stand for you two ganging up on me," Sirius said firmly, but his eyes twinkled with mirth.

Willow winked at Harry. "Whatever you say, Sir."

"By the way," Willow added lightly. "Have you talked to Dawn lately, Harry?"

Harry choked on his pizza. "Um, what?"

Resting her chin on her knuckles she gave him a knowing look. "Oh, I just heard that you and Dawn have been chatting lately, that's all."

Feeling the sharp eyes of both Sirius and Willow on him, Harry suddenly felt nervous.

"Er, yeah. You know, discussing our run-ins with evil and stuff," he said weakly.

"Hmmm," Willow mused as she appraised him. "Well, that's nice. Also, are those Rita Skeeter stories I read in the Prophet true? You and Hermione are dating?"

"No!" he said hotly. "That stupid cow reporter keeps making up lies and stirring up drama for the Triwizard Tournament stuff," he complained sourly. "I'm not interested in Hermione like that and she feels the same way. We're just friends."

"Oh? So are there any girls out there that you might be interested in?" Willow asked with an innocent smile.

"Willow, leave the poor boy alone," Sirius rolled his eyes.

"What? I'm just curious!"

"Ah, I dunno," Harry mumbled.

"Well," Willow shrugged in a carefree manner. "Dawn isn't dating anyone."

Harry felt his face flush. He really couldn't stop thinking about his last day in California when he and Dawn had wrestled for his wand – er, even that sounded dirty to him. "That's nice," he said carefully. "She's a nice girl. I told her she should come to Hogwarts next year – do you think Buffy will let her?" A bit a hopefulness crept into his voice.

"I don't know. Buffy has eased up a lot on the overprotection but it might be hard for her to send Dawnie to boarding school. Buuut, it would be in the best interests of Dawn's education so I might have to talk to her into it," Willow grinned at Harry.

"Oh, neat," Harry said in a non-committal voice as he concentrated intently on his slice of pizza – causing him to miss the triumphant look that Willow shot Sirius.

Later in the day, while it was raining, Willow decided that both Sirius and Harry needed to experience a proper childhood – which meant that they were going to watch Scooby-Doo cartoons. Growing up Harry had never been allowed to watch TV so he was curious as to where the infamous vampire slayer and her group of experienced fighters got their nickname from, and he said as much to Willow.

"Oh," she laughed. "Well, there are no slayings in these cartoons but there are plenty of various baddies." She settled onto the large couch and motioned for Harry to sit next to her. As he watched her fiddle with the remote Harry was reminded of how much of his mother she resembled, from what he had seen in pictures and in the Mirror of Erised. Her red hair, soft smile, pretty face, and warm presence were so similar that sometimes it made him sad all over again not to have his parents or have grown up with a 'real' family.

"Popcorn man coming through!" Sirius shouted gleefully as he emerged from the kitchen.

"Did you burn it again?" Willow smirked.

"Hey!" he scowled. "Third time's the charm," he added with twinkling eyes as he sat on the other side of Harry.

"Ooh, it's starting," Willow said in a hushed voice. "Now Sirius, no talking. I want you to watch the full thing."

Sirius gave her a stricken look and Harry snickered. "Who said I would talk?" he asked in an offended voice.

"Right," Willow said dryly. She leaned closer to Harry. "Sirius, in case you haven't noticed, tends to have very strong opinions and often feels the need to give them during movies."

"I do not!" Sirius said hotly.

"Uh-huh. Sure," Willow smirked.

Sirius put his arm around Harry and whispered conspiratorially. "Har, you want to go look for some frogs outside with me after this?"

Harry just laughed and Willow tossed popcorn at his godfather.

"Ok, quiet!" Willow said as the DVD began to play.

While they watched the movie and munched on popcorn Harry thought on how nice it was to spend time with Sirius and Willow. As Willow played with his messy hair in a motherly way and Sirius would whisper 'opinionated comments' to him just to annoy Willow, Harry realized something.

So _this_ is what family was like.

* * *

A/N:

Okay, all together now: "Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!" ;)

And as you know by now I'm not a fan of neatly wrapped emotions so while both Willow and Sirius have made progress, regarding what happened in the last chapter, things are still messy – just like in real life.

So pleeease review because Musie likes it and they make me giddy!

Thanks for reading!

*Mirror of Erised: In the first HP book Harry sees him mum and dad in the mirror because it was his greatest desire.


	66. Nothing's Better Than PostSoul Restorat

**Nothing's Better Than Post-Soul Restoration Cake! **

* * *

A/N:

This episode is based on Season 4, Episode 15 of 'Angel' ('Orpheus'). The link to the wiki page is here: .org/wiki/Orpheus_(Angel)

There will be some dialogue from the episode used. It is used because it is either needed or just so gosh darn fun that I had to use it :) It was hard to discern how much to use but I've had some random ideas that might involve Sirius and Willow working with the Angel crew in the future so I wanted to establish this first meeting; while still making sure readers could follow the story (I know a lot of Buffy fans are not as familiar with Angel, esp the often disliked S3 & S4)

**Disclaimer:** The dialogue – as well as all the 'Angel' characters – belongs to the Mutant Enemy crew and Angel staff, not I. Dialogue was taken from: .com/angel/transcripts/081_#beginning

* * *

Willow hummed a Jewel song to herself as she packed her suitcase for the trip back to California. After two weeks in England she was ready to get back home and face everyone. However, she would miss being around the coven; they really were a second family to her now. Plus, she would miss that by being here she and Sirius were close to Harry. His mood had drastically improved at the visit of his godson and he was still in good spirits. She just hoped they would last after they went back home.

"Willow?" Sirius' voice called from the kitchen.

"Yeah?"

"Phone call for you. Some guy named Fred."

She leaned out the doorway in confusion. "I don't think I know any guys named Fred."

"Well, he has a weird high-pitched voice and said he's from L.A., if that helps at all."

"Oh!" Willow rushed into the kitchen and snatched the phone from Sirius. "Hey Fred! What's up?"

"Oh, you know. Rain of fire, sun-blottage, and overall apocalypse type things," Winfred 'Fred' Burkle explained in her sweet Texan accent.

"Really? That's… different," Willow said in amazement, with a twinge of apprehension

"Oh, well, the rain is done and the sun is back, but unfortunately we still have an apocalypse.

"Is it the First Evil?" Willow inquired as she sat on a stool in the breakfast nook.

"First Evil? Nope. We're dealing with someone we call the Beast Master-"

"Like that guy who dresses like Tarzan and talks to animals?"

"Who? No. He, or it, was controlling this creature called 'The Beast', hence the name. But anyways, that's not why I called you. We actually need someone to ensoul Angelus."

Willow was glad that she was sitting down. "You need someone to what?" she gasped in shock.

"Yeah," Fred said sheepishly. "You see, Angelus apparently knew the Beast Master but Angel couldn't remember it. So we took out Angel's soul and was going to put it back until the container with his soul went missing. And now Angelus killed the evil lawyer that Wesley was dating and is running rampant in the streets."

"Oh." This was bad. "I'll be there as soon as possible," she promised.

* * *

Willow and Sirius arrived at the Hyperion Hotel later that night, thanks to asking Luke to change the destination of their portkey. She gave Sirius an encouraging smile. "Well, this should be fun."

Sirius arched a brow. "Somehow seeing your old friend Angel 'The Scourge of Europe' being evil doesn't sound like much fun," he commented dryly.

"Okay, that's true. But Fred said he's locked in a cage in the basement so we won't have to be by him. And besides, there's nothing like a good soul restoration spell to really end our vacation!" she joked easily and Sirius chuckled.

Linking hands they walked into the lobby and saw Wesley, Fred, and a teenage boy – Connor, Willow guessed – arguing.

"You're lying to yourselves," Connor argued fiercely. "You all think that I'm taking this personally so that you don't have to, but inside you know I'm right. We need to put Angelus down.

"I don't think so," Willow grinned. "I think you need a witch." They all stared at her in astonishment. "Did I come at a bad time?" she asked.

"Willow," Wesley greeted her.

Connor stared at her in confusion. "She's a witch?"

"Yes, hi. And this is Sirius, my boyfriend."

"Hello," Sirius greeted them.

Willow continued. "And you must be Angel's handsome, yet androgynous son."

"It's Connor," he sneered.

Willow nodded matter-of-factly. Maybe it was a thing that all blood relatives of Champions had to be whiny and annoying – thankfully Dawn had outgrown that. "And the sneer's genetic. Who knew?"

"Hi Willow. Nice to meet you, Sirius," Fred grinned.

"Hey Fred. It's good to see you." Willow fought not to smile as she looked at Wesley. Wow. He had _really_ changed his style. "Oh, and it's the Marlboro Man. Or at least his extra stubbly, mentally unstable, insomniac, first cousin of—for the love of Hecate, somebody stop me."

"It's OK. I'm a yammerer from way back," Fred giggled.

"Are there forces gathering? Did the call of magic draw you here?" Wesley asked in concern.

Willow and Fred laughed. "Oh, no. More like the call of Fred."

"Of course. Bring in the only living person to ever re-ensoul Angel," Wesley stated in wonder at the sheer simplicity of it.

"She has a fresh brain. I thought she might see some things we missed," Fred shrugged.

"Oh, after hearing the thoroughness of your research methodology I don't think that's possible," Willow shared a geeky grin with Fred.

"Aw, go on," Fred giggled.

Willow looked at everyone in turn. "We should probably start the debriefing. Where's Cordy?"

"Unfortunately, the guy you're all trying to magically re-ensoul shot her with a crossbow. She's not up for visitors," Connor said sullenly.

"I think she'll want to see Willow," Wesley disagreed." After all, she's traveled a long way, and they have a history together."

"Sounds good!" Willow said enthusiastically. "Lead the way, Angel Jr?"

"Don't call me that," Connor scowled. "Follow me," he added as he began the walk up the curving staircase.

Leaving Sirius alone with Fred and Wesley. Willow said that she wasn't close with either of them but they had each known her for a while. Sometimes he was still caught by surprise at how his life had changed; going from solitude in Azkaban to meeting new people constantly through his new life with Willow.

"So, Sirius," Fred smiled widely. "Do you want any tea or anything?"

"Sure, Fred. That sounds lovely," Sirius replied charmingly. There was something about the woman that made him feel at home, with her warm smile and her way of speech definitely reminded him of Willow.

"Have a seat," Wesley invited him to sit on the dark couch in the foyer. "How was your trip?" he asked after they were settled and Fred brought them all some tea.

"Oh, excellent after we rearranged the portkeys," Sirius replied.

"Portkeys?" Wesley asked sharply. "What are those?"

"Oh. Willow said everyone at Angel Investigations was familiar with the supernatural," Sirius frowned, realizing he had just let the cat out of the bag. "You've never heard of the wizarding world?"

The shared look of interest made him realize that Fred and Wesley must be the 'Ravenclaws' of this operation.

"No, not at all," Wesley mused.

"Where is it?" Fred inquired eagerly – she reminded him of the look of utter 'geek-knowledge' that Willow would get when acquiring a new dusty book.

"Mind you, this information is forbidden for Muggles to know," he began. Of course, he didn't really care but he thought a disclaimer would be appropriate for them.

"Muggles?" Fred asked with a nose wrinkled in confusion.

"Non-magical folk," Sirius explained. "The wizarding world is secret but our people exist in almost every country with their own governments. Our magic differs from Willow's in that we use wands." He pulled his out and held it up for them to look.

"May I see it?" Wesley asked carefully.

Sirius shook his head. "Sorry, Wesley but you'll be hard-pressed to find a wizard or witch who will give up their wand. Bad things can happen – like teenage girls blowing up the side of the house."

Wesley shrugged and nodded his head. "Of course. I take it that happened on the Hellmouth?"

"How'd you know?" Sirius grinned.

Wesley chuckled darkly. "I was sent there as a Watcher to Faith and Buffy for a year. I assume Willow told you about our situation with Faith?"

"Speaking of, I'm going to check on her," Fred excused herself.

"Yes. Fred explained on the phone when she called a second time that Faith injected herself with a mystical drug called Orpheus, Angelus drank from her, and now they're both passed out?" Sirius raised his eyebrow as he listed the disastrous events.

Wesley sighed and Sirius noticed a flash of guilt pass through his eyes. "Yes. We're hoping she'll be strong enough to fight the drug."

Just then Willow came running down the stairs. "I figured it out!" she shouted enthusiastically as Sirius and Wesley both stood in alarm.

"What?" Wesley asked earnestly.

Willow began going through her suitcase and pulled out a glass jar to set on the counter where the reception desk was. "One minute," she said. "Let me try it before I get your hopes up." After putting together some spell ingredients she began an incantation that sounded almost Asian in nature. Once she was done the jar began bubbling.

"Look, it's working," Willow said giddily.

"What is it?" Sirius asked.

"Well, the container that Angel's soul is in is missing, right? Well I am using Delothrian's Arrow to shatter it," Willow explained.

"I thought Delothrian's Arrow was used to protect good magics," Wesley commented.

"It is," Willow grinned.

"So, how can you use it to break the jar? The Muo-Ping is a sacred object. It's holy."

Willow had a huge grin on her face. "It's glass, therefore crunchable. The sacred's what's inside. _'All life a container.-" _

_"-'For the heart of all life.' _You've studied the Daharim," Wesley said in shocked admiration.

"Of course I end up dating a smarty-pants Ravenclaw," Sirius mused with a wink in Willows direction. "What would Prongs think of me?"

Swatting him playfully, Willow turned back to Wesley. "It had to be something specific. There's lots of jars in the world—can't shatter them all. I mean, you could, but good things come in jars. Peanut butter, jelly, those two-headed fetal pigs at the natural history museum."

Sirius and Wesley shared revolted looks of disgust.

"Come on, everybody loves fetal pigs," Willow defended herself.

Wesley leaned forward with a grim smile. "Sorry. I think my sense of humor's trapped in a jar somewhere."

"Does seem like you've given in to the grumpy side of the force," Willow said thoughtfully.

The ex-Watcher sighed. "A lot's happened. Not just Angelus. I've been—I've changed. I've seen a darkness in myself. I'm not sure you'd even begin to understand—"

"I flayed a guy alive and tried to destroy the world. Oh, and two weeks ago I went momentarily bad again, ripped out a evil wizard's brains, and summoned a great white shark to eat an evil witch," Willow supplied.

Sirius found the look of shock and Wesley's sudden display if discomfort pretty amusing.

"And I'm technically an escaped convict from a wizarding prison who was accused of killing one wizard and thirteen Muggles in downtown London in broad daylight," Sirius added helpfully.

"Oh. So…" he trailed off as he looked anywhere but at Willow and Sirius.

"Darkness. Been there," Willow confirmed.

"Yeah. Well, I never flayed," he mumbled as he looked ill. "I had a woman chained in a closet, though."

"Hey," Willow nodded.

"That doesn't compare," Wesley shook his head.

"No, dark. That's dark. You've been to a place," said Willow in a reassuring, positive tone.

"You really haven't changed much, you know that?" Wesley smiled.

Willow shrugged. "More or less," she agreed with a smile.

"Well, I suppose I should bring the others up to inform them." And with that Wesley departed the room.

"How ya doing?" Willow asked Sirius as she prepared some more spell materials.

Sirius crossed his arms and leaned against the counter. "Alright. Just spilled the beans on the wizarding world to Fred and Wesley," he grinned.

"Oh! They didn't know? Weird. I always got the impression Wesley knew everything," she snickered. "Trust me, he was a lot different when he lived in Sunnydale. He's done a 180 for sure."

"Indeed? Well, can't say I'm surprised that you and Fred are friends," he chuckled. "I think with her I've finally found someone who gets more geeked out by knowledge than you."

Willow laughed. "Yeah, Fred's awesome. I met her the summer after Buffy died almost two years ago. I had come up to tell Angel about it and spent a couple days here. Angel's not, well," she frowned. "He's not exactly forthcoming with his feelings so I wanted to stick around a bit in order to keep a close eye on him and make sure he was okay. He ended up running off to Sri Lanka but before we both left I got to hang out with Fred, Gunn, and Lorne."

"Which one's Lorne again?"

"Oh, you'll know him when you see him," Willow gave him a secretive smile.

The sound of running footsteps came the upstairs and a bald-headed black man appeared over the stairway. "Will! What up girl?" he greeted her with a big hug as he made it down, followed by Wesley and Fred.

"Hiya Gunn! Good to see you! How've you been?"

"You ask me that when we've got a feral vamp downstairs and a Beast Master dude out there?" Gunn deadpanned.

"Oh, yeah. Same old, same old," Willow smiled sheepishly. "Gunn, this is my boyfriend Sirius. He's a wizard."

"What up man?" Gun asked as he shook his hand. "So you're a wizard, huh? Like hocus pocus and all that?"

Sirius grinned. "And all that," he answered.

"Where's everyone else?" Willow asked.

"Lorne's watching over Faith and Connor is with Cordelia," Wesley answered.

"Why's Connor with Cordelia?" Willow asked in confusion.

Gunn snorted and Fred winced. "We ask ourselves that same question everyday," Gunn grimaced.

"Why?" Then comprehension dawned on her. "Oh. OH. Oh no. You don't mean like _that_, do you?"

"Wait, Angel's teenage son is dating the girl you went to high school with – who must be about twenty-two?" Sirius asked in shock.

Fred shook her head. "Trust me, you do not want to know. It's icky."

"O-kay then. Um, well, let's get the spell started, shall we?" Willow instructed Fred on the first part and the woman solemnly walked around the lobby in a circle carrying a lit white candle and ringing a bell. After she completed several revolutions around the circle, Willow stopped her.

"You're good. Good bells," she smiled. Walking to the front desk she added, "OK, now all I gotta do is contact the spirit world, harness the Delothrian ebb, and focus it through my little marble of doom here." Willow held a small metal ball in the palm of her hand. "And we'll restore the Muo-Ping's entropic equilibrium."

"The jar goes smash?" Gunn questioned.

"Smash-o-crash," Willow clarified.

"All I need to know. I'll be downstairs in case the Prince of Darkness wakes up," Gunn informed them as he headed for the basement.

Wesley walked up to Willow and gave her a serious look. "You ready?"

She nodded. "Should be a snap."

Apparently she jinxed herself with that statement because a bolt of orange energy hit Willow and threw her across the room. A voice filled with fury and doom echoed in her head.

"Willow!" Sirius shouted in obvious concern.

_**"Stay your hand, witch! You will not interfere with what must come to pass." **_

Willow clutched her head in pain and mumbled weakly, _' "Invadoria disparu!"_

_**"You think to banish me?" **_

Furious at the entity speaking in her mind Willow threw her arms open and looked at the sky. _'"Vetsche invadoria disparu!" _

"He's enormously powerful. It's the dead Beast's master. He contacted Angelus the same way," dimly she heard Wesley inform Sirius.

Her attempts to dispel the Beast Master were blocked so Willow decided to fight through it. This bastard didn't know who he was messing with. Focusing her energy she felt her eyes bleed black with power and held out her hand. The metal marble began to levitate and she spoke powerfully._ "Open the window. Fill this stone. Inside, outside. Two made one." _

Another bolt of energy knocked her to the ground but she got back up again and focused on the now-glowing ball in front of her. _' "Alesh ashtoreth!" _she yelled. The ground began to shake and she forcefully continued the spell. _' "Semsa nahl eresh a'lahm!" _

An apparition of a huge demonic head floated above them in the lobby, shrieking and yelling. Stupid Beast Master. Why were evil things so damn melodramatic?

"What the hell is that?" Connor asked in shock.

"Ignore it," she said with gritted teeth before continuing the spell. _' "Find your target. Leave my side. Geth na haroth castellum tol. Break the glass. Let loose the soul!" _

Within moments Willow felt the Muo-Ping shatter and she collapsed to the floor in exhaustion.

"Willow!" Sirius exclaimed as he rushed to her side. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Willow sighed. "Now let's channel Angel's soul into the Orb of Thessulah and then restore his soul. Piece of cake," she smiled at him

"When we're done with this I think I'm buying cake for everyone," Wesley muttered.

"Ooh, yay. Nothing's better than post-soul restoration cake!" Willow gave Wesley a silly grin – she really did hope that he found whatever jar that was holding his sense of humor.

Nearly twenty minutes of chanting later they finished the spell and restored Angel's soul. Willow had led the incantations but Sirius had also read from the Romanian text. Willow had assured him that even people who never used magic could assist in this spell – Oz had helped her the first time. It was certainly a different experience to use magic without a wand but he found it rather exciting. Now he was tempted to have Willow teach him more; who knows what he could learn to help protect Harry against Voldemort and Willow against the First?

"Angel!" he heard Willow exclaim brightly. Turning from his task of repacking the spell ingredients he saw Willow jump up and hug a man who Sirius recognized from Spike's amusing description of Angel – "a tall wanker with an overhanging forehead and over-gelled hair that sticks straight up."

"Willow," Angel smiled. "I guess you're the one I have to thank for this."

She shrugged self-consciously. "No big. We were just coming back from a mini-vacation anyways."

"We?" Angel inquired with a raised eyebrow.

Willow grinned and gestured towards Sirius. "This is my boyfriend, Sirius. He's a—"

Angel sniffed the air as he approached Sirius. "A wizard, huh?"

"How did you know?" Sirius asked in surprise.

Angel smirked at him. "Met a few of your kind in my day; you all smell a certain way. I've heard that people from the wizarding world have the best tasting blood, after slayers."

Sirius' eyes narrowed. "You're not still evil, are you?"

"No, just wanted to give Willow's new boyfriend a hard time," Angel chuckled as he clasped Sirius' right hand with a firm grip.

"Oh," Sirius smirked. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise."

"Whoa, Red's got a man? What happened to the girl-on-girl action?" Faith called out as she lounged on the couch.

"Faith!" Willow scolded in an annoyed voice; blushing a bit.

"What Red? I'm just saying, your man must be a freak in the sheets if he got you to convert," she smirked.

Sirius laughed – he decided that he liked this girl already. Willow had told him that the history between Faith and the Scoobies was a bad one but that they were going to need Faith in Sunnydale. However, he didn't think that she could be _that_ bad.

"For your information Faith," Willow stated testily, "I am bisexual."

"Really?" Wesley said in astonishment.

"Oh," Fred commented.

"Damn," Gunn admired.

"Welcome to the club," Faith drawled with a sultry smile.

Now Willow and Sirius were the ones to join everyone else in shock.

"Really?" Willow asked.

"Oh my," Fred added.

"Seriously?" Wesley tried to clarify.

"Da-aamn," Gunn said with approval.

Faith shrugged. "How else did you think I figured out you and Tara within minutes of seeing you?"

"Oh," Willow frowned. "I guess my Gaydar wasn't fully activated by then."

"Faithy, you should eat something and replenish your system," declared a green-skinned, red-horned demon that was carrying a large box as he exited the area where the kitchen was kept. "I've got donuts!"

"Hey, thanks man," Faith said with a beaming smile. "Nothing like mystical drugs to make a girl hungry."

"Think nothing of it, Faithy-poo," he – Lorne, Sirius assumed – said in a motherly way.

She gave him a stern look. "I'm allowing 'Faithy' on account of you taking care of me, but I draw the line at 'Faithy-poo'."

"No problem sweet pea," he grinned. "And my! Look who's here!" He engulfed Willow in a hug. "Willster! So nice to see you!"

"Heya Lorne! It's good to see you. I like your suit, by the way."

The demon admired his brightly colored lounge singer wear and batted his eyelashes. "What can I say?" he shrugged. "Some people are just born with style." Spotting Sirius he raised an eyebrow in interest. "And just who do we have here?"

"My boyfriend, Sirius. Sirius, this is Lorne."

They shook hands and Sirius felt a little jumpy at Lorne's looks – he had only met one other group of demons during that contest against Buffy and that had not been exactly a friendly encounter. "Hello, Lorne. It's nice to meet you."

"Ooh, handsome and polite," Lorne said in a stage whisper as he elbowed Willow. "Nice to meet you too, Sirius. I trust that you've been taking care of our favorite tree?"

"Of course," he said quickly. Between Angel and Lorne, Sirius was a little afraid of getting more 'shovel speeches' from Willow's friends.

"I bet he is!" Faith cat-called enthusiastically.

Willow shot him a pained look and mouthed 'so sorry' to Sirius. He just grinned. After all, he thought with a smirk, he didn't mind if people thought that he was a god in the bedroom – they wouldn't be wrong!

"Nice job," Lorne commented to Willow. "The long hair is nice; reminds me of that Aragorn chap from Lord of the Rings."

"You think so too?" Willow giggled. Sirius just rolled his eyes. Muggles – and Muggle-media enthusiasts – really seemed to bloody love that movie.

"Tell me girlfriend, how big is his sword?" Lorne asked in a gossipy tone.

"Ok, gotta go," Gunn quickly said.

"Yeah." Angel looked pained. "Me too. Gotta go set some bandages."

"I have, ah, books that need to be read," Wesley added.

"I'm going to check on Cordy," Connor stated.

Within seconds the four of them had vanished, leaving Lorne to stare in amusement at Willow, Faith, Fred, and Sirius.

"Was it something I said?"

* * *

"Hey Faith, got a minute?" Willow asked as she stepped into the room that Faith had been using for a nap.

"For the bad ass witch of the west? No prob, yo." Faith patted a spot next to her on the bed. "Have a seat."

"Thanks. So, um, how are you feeling?" It felt weird to be talking to Faith like a normal person. Considering that the last time she had seen her Faith had pulled the magic switcharoo with Buffy so she was having a hard time conjuring friendly feelings. But she and Angel had chatted on the phone a few times over the last couple years – not that Buffy knew that; Willow just liked to check in on him – and he told her about Faith's conversion. Still, it was hard to believe in person.

"Like I just partied with Lindsey Lohan and got juggled by a seal," she grimaced. "You?"

Willow shrugged. She really wanted to postpone asking Faith of all people for help. "Been busy. We've got a new Big Bad on the Hellmouth?"

"Yeah? How big?"

"The biggest. Literally. It's the First Evil."

"First Evil?" Faith smirked. "That sounds kinda lame."

Willow laughed; Faith was right. "Well, it is an incorporeal entity that is literally the first evil that ever existed on earth. It's planning on ending the line of slayers – starting by killing all the potential slayers – and opening up the Hellmouth once and for all."

"Ending the slayer line?" Faith gawked. "The First Evil wouldn't, by any chance have eyeless minions with killer knives?"

"Oh, um, yeah actually."

Faith's face hardened. "Yeah, I had one of them attack me in prison. Thanks for the head's up."

"Faith, I'm sorry," Willow apologized sincerely. How could they have been so stupid to not think of Faith all this time? "We just thought you were safe in there."

"Yeah," Faith snorted. "That's prison. Safe as kittens."

Willow looked away. "Sorry Faith. It's been real bad over there but we should have told you."

It was silent for a long moment before Faith spoke.

"It's cool. I get it. So, lemme guess – you all need help?"

"Yeah," Willow nodded. "A war is coming and we need every warrior that we can get."

"Well then," Faith stood up. "No time like the present."

* * *

"So. You and Willow." Sirius glanced up from a thick book he found in Wesley's study to see Angel leaning against doorframe.

"Uh, yeah. Is this the part where you do the shovel speech?"

Angel smirked. "I've heard about that. No, I'm just interested in what your intentions are with Willow. She's a good girl and probably the only one of Buffy's friends that I honestly consider a friend. So, what _are_ your intentions?"

Sirius knew that this 'shovel speech' was going to be much different from the others. After all, he didn't even know Angel and the guy was a vampire. "Honestly? I love Willow more than anything, right up there with my godson. She's very important to me."

"Really? Do you plan on asking for her hand in marriage then?" Was it just him or had Angel's voice sounded a bit Irish there?

"Marriage?" he asked with wide eyes. "I've thought about it but that just seems a bit too soon. We've been together for only six months now."

"You're a lot older than her, don't you want to get married and settle down?"

"Uh." Sirius squirmed uncomfortably. "I may be older, yes, but don't think I'm at that point yet." He loved Willow and being with her had made him get over a lot of his commitment issues – however he wasn't quite ready for the final commitment. Plus, take away his twelve years living in that hell hole and he was only twenty-three in real world terms – definitely not an age ready for marriage and kids and settling down.

Angel regarded him with a cool expression and when he spoke there were still traces of an Irish accent. "Willow seems to like you a lot and you better do right by her, Sirius Black, or else I'll allow myself to relive what it's like to drink human blood. Do we have an understanding?"

"Hurting her is the last thing on my mind," he said; feeling rather annoyed that this stranger had just threatened him. Then again, he knew this was the way of Willow's friends.

"Good," Angel said as he departed. Blimey, Angel alone was scary. No wonder people were freaked out by Angelus.

Sirius was just putting away his book when a second person came into Wesley's office. "Oh, Lorne, hi," Sirius greeted.

"Hey there snookums. How was Angel's speech?"

Sirius laughed. "So you know about that?"

Lorne shrugged and smirked. "Thin walls."

"Ah."

"Listen, has Willow told you about my empathetic abilities; that I can sense a person's future when they sing?"

"She mentioned it on our way here. So you really can?"

"Sure thing, hon. Want a reading?"

"Why?" Sirius asked suspiciously.

"Honestly, just because I'm nosy as hell as to who Willow's new honey bear is. But, it might be helpful for you too."

"I don't know," Sirius said with uncertainty.

"Aw, come on!" Lorne encouraged.

"I don't really sing," Sirius grimaced.

"Well at least you know that. You would not _believe_ how many people are the opposite – they think they can but actually can't," Lorne chuckled deeply. "Come on, sing a little ditty.

Curiosity got the best of him. "Alright," he sighed. "We used to sing this when we went out drinking sometimes. Not the best song but the only one that comes to mind."

Lorne gestured for him to go on.  
_  
"There once was a wizard who lived on a hill  
Who one night had some time to kill.  
So he bathed in the tub,  
And went down to the pub.  
But you see, he just wanted a little drink,  
Never wanted to raise a stink._  
Sirius finished and looked at Lorne expectantly. "Well?" he prompted the demon.

But then he spotted a mightily pretty lass,  
Who gave every attempt of wooing some sass.  
But one mate went too far and grabbed her behind,  
Causing the wizard to loudly declare "She's mine!"  
The other man said "Shut it you mick!"  
And the wizard decided to get the nasty prick.

So he jinxed the man's pants to fall past his knees,  
And caused him to continually sneeze.  
Then he hit him with a freezing spell in the right spot,  
And certain bits chilled and shrank on the Scot.  
The man ran out like a weeping child,  
Leaving the mick with his new lady and a giant smile."

Lorne looked a little uneasy. "Well, um, first off, you are certainly not as bad at singing as you thought you were."

"What did you see?" Sirius persisted, not liking the look on Lorne's face.

"I saw some bits from your past – that you still feel guilty about your friends and brother. You really should try to understand that some things are just fate, Sirius, and happen for a reason. Don't beat yourself up about it.

Sirius frowned. Now Lorne sounded like Willow. "Anything else?"

"Just," Lorne shrugged. "You've got to trust your heart in the coming future. Words can breed lies and sometimes you need to look further than that. Trust in yourself. And trust in Willow."

"Wait, that's it?" Sirius scowled.

"Look kid, what I see isn't always one hundred percent right. I would just suggest that you stick with Willow when she needs you most."

"I would never leave her!" Sirius said in an outraged voice; furious that Lorne would suggest such a thing.

Lorne held up a hand. "Listen babycakes, I'm not saying anything; just trying to give you some advice. Take care of our Willow."

"Oh Sirius! There you are," Willow said as she stuck her head in the door. "I was looking for you. Hey Lorne," she grinned.

"Hey there my fiery little nymph. You taking off?"

"Yeah. Faith's coming with. We've got a lot of work to do back home."

"Well then, let's get going," Sirius said as he followed Willow out the door.

The empath demon had to be wrong, Sirius decided. After all, he would never leave his Willow.

Still… now Sirius had a bad feeling in his gut; dreading what may be coming.

* * *

A/N:

Looks like the gang is finally going to be together soon… Just in time for the Final Battle!

I am a total sucker for reviews. They made me deliciously happy and I would love it if you took the time to leave a 'lil note. Pretty pretty please? … I did move into my new place today… Consider it a housewarming gift! *grins*

The 'song' Sirius sings is my own… You know how much I love my little rhymes ;) *giggle* My favorite line is: Then he hit him with a freezing spell in the right spot,  
And certain bits chilled and shrank on the Scot…. hahahahaha

*Beast Master – old 90s TV show, kinda like Xena and Hercules with a super hot guy who was bffs with a tiger. *drools* :)

Thank you!


	67. Hard Questions and Simple Answers

**A/N:**

* * *

Remus Lupin was sitting on a leathered-upholstered sitting chair in the corner of the library as he skimmed the pages of a book titled i_'The Art of __Legilimency'_. /i Sirius' capture by the Unspeakables and Willow's momentary descent into darkness left the werewolf feeling rather troubled about the state of affairs in Sunnydale and he was determined to find some answers. Last night he, Xander, and Giles had been discussing their situation in detail and the Bringers had been brought up as a possible source of information. Of course, the Bringers were unable to speak – they possessed no tongues – so they needed a way around that – and Legilimency struck Remus as a possible solution.

The only problem was, as skilled a wizard as he was, Remus knew very little about Legilimency. It had never been taught at Hogwarts and he knew few people who were skilled in that area of magic – Dumbledore, of course, and rumors said that Voldemort had excelled in that area as well.

Hence why Remus was currently skipping lunch in order to peruse this text that Anya – Merlin bless her bulging bank account – had ordered from a wizarding book shop in Columbia Village.

The door cracked open and a delicious aroma filled his nostrils. Tearing his eyes away from his book, Remus saw that Anya was standing in the doorway with an annoyed expression on her face as she held a plate full of salmon and buttered broccoli.

"Anya?" he asked in a surprised voice. He thought she was busy helping Giles lead a class, of sorts, on demonology for the Potentials.

She huffed loudly and set the plate, along with silverware, onto the small end table next to him. "Honestly, do you think you can just skip meals just because there is an impending apocalypse?" she asked in an irate voice that reminded him slightly of his mother.

"Er." Remus felt like a misbehaving child. "No?"

"Exactly. You've missed breakfast, lunch, and you must be crazy if you think you can skip dinner too." Her lips were pursed in a manner of annoyance that Remus secretly liked – she was rather attractive when she was annoyed. His Marauder tendencies sometimes urged him to purposely bother her just so her cheeks would flush that shade of pink and her eyes would flash like green fire.

"Dinner?" he asked as his eyebrows drew up in surprise. "What time is it?"

"Seven p.m.," she rolled her eyes. "Goddess, I swear you're growing as book-lovin' and stuffy as Giles. Next thing you know, you'll be wearing tweed!"

Remus chuckled at that mental image. "You think I'm stuffy?" he teased – although a part of him secretly worried that maybe Anya meant that. She was so full of life that Remus felt he paled in comparison – he really didn't understand what she saw in him.

"So far, only in the library." Then her eyes lit up and she smirked. "Well, except for that one time when Andrew walked in. You certainly were not stuffy then," she murmured as she sank into his lap.

His hands trailed up and down her curves as he felt his breathing heighten. Merlin, this woman had a maddening effect on him. "Is that so?" he breathed softly as he pulled her head in for a kiss. Her body melded next to his as her soft lips eagerly pressed against his own. Running the tip of his tongue along her lips, he begged for entrance and she accepted with enthusiasm.

"Yo! Can you two i_not_ /ido that here?" a loud voice startled them.

Anya pulled away and glared at a grimacing Rona and a giggling Vi, while Remus just sighed loudly and felt rather embarrassed at the intrusion.

"What is it, little girls? We're busy," she sniffed.

Rona continued talking. "Hey, not our fault you're a lady in the street but a freak in every room of this house. Giles sent us to get you – it's your turn to lead your segment, he said."

"Don't call Anya a freak," Remus admonished sharply. Really, some of the potentials were awful when it came to respecting their elders; Rona especially so.

Rona's eyes widened and Vi elbowed her. "Uh, I didn't mean it like i_that_/i, dude. I was just using a line from a rap song. You know; 'I want a lady in the street but a freak in the bed.' 'Cept, obviously, Anya's freaky in more places than just in a bed."

"Yeah!" Vi chimed in. "She wasn't trying to say that you're girlfriend is a circus freak of anything. In fact, it's almost-sorta-kinda like a compliment!" she shook her head eagerly.

Remus snorted at their attempts to explain themselves. Dawn had introduced him to 'rap' but it was certainly not his cup of tea. "Alright girls, it is fine," he assured them.

"Teenage girls are so strange," Anya sighed. "But that's alright; I see where one could find such a musical comparison to be humorous. Although, you should know that I am not Remus' girlfriend."

"You aren't?" Remus asked swiftly in confusion.

"Um, okay. We'll, uh, tell Mr. Giles that you'll be a while," Vi said as she dragged Rona out of the library and shut the door.

Anya, still sitting on his lap, turned to him in surprise. "Well, no. I mean, we have most excellent orgasm times and I like you but I did not think we were dating."

"Oh." Well, Remus supposed he never had officially 'asked her out' but this wasn't Hogwarts, after all. There was no pomp and circumstance surrounding such a declaration of feelings at this age – was there? Remus just assumed that since they spent copious amounts of time together and that they lived in the same house it was rather assumed.

"Why? Did you think we were?" she asked with a gleam in her eye.

"Er, yes actually. I just thought that was assumed," he answered in a stilted voice. Merlin, did he feel like an idiot.

"Oh," Anya shrugged as she stood up. "Well, I should go to Giles before he sends anymore pestering potentials."

"Anya, wait!" Remus called as he stood up and grabbed her hand.

"Yes?" she asked apprehensively.

"Will you do me the honor of being my girlfriend?" Remus asked with more courage than he felt.

Anya nibbled her bottom lip and stared into his eyes. "Um, no thank you."

His eyes blinked several times as he sought to analyze every angle of her response. "No…No thank you?" he asked incredulously.

"Look Remus, I like where things are right now. This is good. Very good, actually. But if we officially are 'dating' then eventually we'll only have to get engaged and then you'll likely leave me at the altar since that seems to be what happens to me. So. Let's just keep this simple and fun. It's worked for the last three-ish months, so why change it?"

Remus' mouth flapped open and shut like a caught fish. Engaged? Leave her at the altar? What was she going on about? Then he remembered Willow telling him about what Xander had done to Anya. "Anya, I know you haven't been human for long but I would never do something like that to you – to leave you at the altar. I would never hurt you like that."

Was that hope that flashed across her eyes? Anya shook her head sadly. "Yes, and I never thought Xander would ever have done that to me either."

"Anya, it's true that I don't know the future but then again, neither do you. Are you really willing to write me off as boyfriend material that quickly?" he asked with a raised brow. With his heart pounding in his chest, Remus struggled to maintain a calm façade. It was crazy, really, that he was suddenly feeling so upset at the thought that Anya saw him as nothing more than someone to have sex with – but it did hurt.

She placed a hand against his chest and looked downwards; never meeting his eyes. "I won't get my heart broken again, Remus. Maybe it's true that you won't but statistically speaking you probably will."

Anya looked up and finally met his gaze. "So. Since we do have the end of the world coming up, can't we just stay the way we were? Especially, 'cause, ya know, we probably won't live to see the end of the year?"

Remus swallowed as he felt a weight drop in his chest. "Of course," he told her smoothly.

"Great!" she beamed as she gave him a quick kiss on the lips before she left the room.

Falling back into his chair Remus rubbed his temples harshly. He was a bloody idiot. Anya didn't i_really_ /iwant him. In fact, he wondered if maybe she was just waiting for Xander to end things with his long-distance relationship with Tonks before she ran back to him. Or something. Merlin, Remus didn't know. He wished that Sirius was back from his vacation so he could talk to his oldest friend.

Eventually, Remus went back to his book and tried to regain his concentration; his dinner ignored and gone cold.

* * *

It was sometime later that evening when Remus was awakened by two low male voices. He found himself slumped in his seat; apparently he had fallen asleep at some point. Remus was just about to sit up and greet whoever was there speaking when he heard something that made him pause.

"He's evil; a killer. He shouldn't be here and I'll be damned if I'm just going to let him walk around like he's a man or something."

Remus slowly raised his head and saw that Robin Wood and Rupert Giles were speaking over a table that was lit by a single candle. Senses on alert, he wondered who they were talking about. Did Robin mean him? He knew the man was a high school principal by day and a demon hunter at night – did he have something against werewolves? It was true that they didn't know much of him; just that his mother was a slayer in the 1970s and Robin had hired Buffy in order to figure out how to assist fighting evil on the Hellmouth.

"I understand what you are saying and I must admit that I am worried as well," Rupert admitted. "I think he will be a crutch in the upcoming battle."

Now Remus' curiosity was certainly piqued. He was terribly nervous that they meant him but Rupert's previous comment didn't make much sense – after all, how would Remus be a crutch?"

"Because Buffy is so dependent on him? Or because the First can use him anytime it pleases in order to send Spike all psycho vampire murderer on us?" Robin scoffed.

Ah. So not him. That was good… Yet Remus was still troubled by this discussion. He did not associate much with Spike – the ensouled vampire preferred spending time in the basement or with Buffy – but ever since their trip to Willy's Spike had taken to Luna. Since Luna spent a good deal of time with Remus, because he was her instructor, Remus had come to know the vampire a bit more. By all accounts he did not seem too bad but Robin was correct regarding the First's ability to control Spike.

"You are correct on both accounts, I'm afraid," Rupert admitted. "But it is the latter that concerns me the most. Buffy knows what Spike can do but I am concerned with her inability to do something about it."

"You mean stake him?"

"Quite."

There was a long moment of silence and Remus wondered if they had heard him. Honestly, he did feel a bit ridiculous eavesdropping like he was under James' invisibility cloak again at Hogwarts but this conversation seemed too important to ignore.

"So perhaps we should do it for her?" Robin offered with a sly smile.

"Buffy will be quite upset with us."

"Eventually she'll understand that it was for the greater good. Besides, who says she has to know?"

"I… I hate lying to her. Ever since her eighteenth birthday I have found it almost impossible to do so. Yet then again, Buffy does not posses the pragmatism that we do. She is failing in the need to cut off all possible attempts of attack by the First. His chip does no help at all since the First can override it. Spike is a danger to us all since we cannot figure out his 'trigger', as Xander called it, and prevent the First from using him again."

His trigger – Remus remembered Sirius explaining that. It was a war technique where at a certain word or phrase a person would carry out their mission. Of course, no one knew what Spike's was. The vampire had no clue and even though Buffy and Willow had heard him humming a song a couple times they had no idea what song it was. However, if they could figure it out then Spike would not have to die.

Because even though he did not know Spike well the vampire possessed a soul and had done good things. It wasn't his fault that the First was using him! Those incidents too closely reminded Remus of werewolf half. After all, Remus was unable to control his actions without a Wolfsbane potion under a full moon – what if he had been used by the First instead of Spike?

He had to speak up.

Remus picked his book up from his lap and set it on the floor. Then he paused and glanced at the cover again, i_ 'The Art of Legilimency.'_ /iThat was it!

"Gentleman," he began. "I apologize for eavesdropping but I couldn't help but overhear…"

* * *

The library was dimly lit with soft glowing candles as it began filling up with the necessary people. Spike sat at a long table with Buffy next to him and with Anya and Rupert several seats down. Luna and Dawn were made to sit as far away as possible in case something went wrong with Spike – Remus had thought it would be good for their education to watch this demonstration of Legilimency. Not to mention, if Spike managed to go insane and snap Remus' neck then they needed a few witches to potentially take up the unfinished task. Although hopefully that wouldn't happen since Spike was shackled with iron chains to the wall behind him.

Remus settled into the seat across from Spike and tried to calm his nerves.

"Simma' down now, Wizard of Odd. Nothing to be nervous 'bout. If it works, then everything will be rainbows and kittens. If it don't then Buffy will stake me."

"No, I won't," she hissed angrily. "You're not dying, Spike."

He gave her a penetrating stare before glancing at Rupert. "Listen pet, it's pretty clear that I'm considered a liability. It's 'cause I am. Don't do nothing foolish on my account."

"It's not for you," Buffy quickly said. "You know we need all the warriors we can get."

"Spike," Remus interrupted. "Before we begin, are you sure you're comfortable with me doing this? I never really have and, as I mentioned earlier, it might be smart to invite Luke. I'm sure in his training as an OSS Agent he must have experience with Legilimency."

"No," Spike spat. "Can't stand that sodding wanker. He thinks he's so bloody great with his magic and connections. Please," he scoffed. "I doi _not_ /ineed his help."

"Spike," Buffy rolled his eyes. "He's not that bad. He did hook us up with portkeys for all the newly discovered potentials and he found us that book on that magical Slayer weapon in Egypt. Plus, he did help us out with getting Willow out of trouble for killing that Lucius dude and Alecto lady."

"Right," he scoffed again. "Wanker only wants to get in your pants; that's why he's nice," Spike grumbled.

"Spike!" Buffy rebuked sharply as she gestured towards Dawn and Luna. "Watch your mouth. Besides, it's not true."

"Silly Buffy," Anya sighed. "So used to vampires that she's unable to see when a human male likes her."

"Hey! That's not true," Buffy said stubbornly. "Besides, our relationship is nothing like that," she said with a worried glance at Spike. "He's an arrogant ass and I'm sure after I smashed his face back in Portland he doesn't like me."

"Some men like that in a woman," Spike said lightly with dark humor.

"Can we i_please_ /iget this on with?" Rupert sighed.

"Right," Remus said quickly before their conversation completely derailed. "Alright Spike, I'm going to go through your memories and see which one triggers an aggressive reaction in you. Be sure to think of events in your life that stimulate strong emotions. Hopefully we'll be able to isolate the trigger afterwards and fix it."

"Go 'head, mate. I'm an open book," Spike said with his arms spread out.

Remus took in a deep breath and made eye contact with Spike. i "_Legilimens_!" /i he incanted as he pointed his wand at Spike's temple.

Images and voices began flashing through Remus' mind. He saw Spike scowling at Luke the last time he was there, him hanging over a burning cross in a crypt with Buffy, Spike screaming as a demon touched his chest in a small African cave, Buffy laying half-naked on her bathroom floor, Anya moaning as Spike writhed above her on a table…

"What?" Remus shouted as pure anger heated his body and made his fingers tremble.

"Oh, er, sorry mate. Didn't mean for you to see that," Spike said sheepishly as he glanced at Anya.

Remus' jaw tightened as his fingers flexed around his wand; suddenly he was regretting talking Rupert and Robin out of killing Spike last night.

"That's quite alright," Remus said tightly with the utmost air of professionalism as he shot Anya a pained look. "Let's carry on and get this over with."

He noted that Anya seemed to realize what Remus must have seen – and he was glad that she looked guilty. He couldn't believe he never knew that she had slept with Spike! And then to actuallyi _see_ /iit!

i "_Legilimens_!" /i

Again the images passed in quick succession as Spike tried to shift through his memories. Spike and Buffy naked and surrounded by debris, Spike watching a soap opera with Dawn, Spike drinking hot chocolate with a woman whose picture Remus has seen in the Summers' home, a raven-haired beauty whose eyes were lit with madness as she danced to a silent song, a malicious vampire with gelled hair standing next to a statue of a demon, and so on.

But nothing seemed to trigger a reaction within Spike.

"Spike, think back to the moment when you attacked Luke or attacked Andrew. What were you thinking about right before then? What song were you singing?" Remus asked.

Suddenly a new image sprang forth and Spike was sitting in a room dressed in eighteenth-century clothes with a singing woman knitting behind him. He gazed at her with love before closing his eyes to listen to the gentle voice of the older woman.

i

"_Early one morning, just as the sun was rising, I heard a maid sing in the valley below…"_

/i

Beastly snarling brought Remus back to reality as he stared at a vamped-out Spike struggling against his shackles. Before he knew what was happening, Spike flipped the table over and it struck Remus' temple as the wizard fell backwards.

"Spike!" Buffy cried as she clocked Spike across the head and threw him back against the wall.

"Remus! Are you okay?" Anya asked in a worried voice as she lifted the table up so Remus could crawl out from under it.

"Fine," he snapped at her. Between what she had said to him last night and seeing Spike screw her in front of him – well, seeing Spike's memory anyways – Remus was not inclined to speak to Anya at this moment.

"So, what did you see?" Buffy asked once Spike was subdued – aka because she had knocked him out.

"The song is an old English folk song that his mother was singing to him. i_ 'Early One Morning,'_ /iI think it's called – my mum was Muggle," Remus explained off their looks as he gingerly rubbed his head.

"Okay, so we know what the trigger is. How do we de-trigger?" Buffy asked urgently.

Rupert shrugged. "Likely this song means a great deal to Spike otherwise he wouldn't be affected so greatly by it. Who was singing it in his memory?"

"An older woman. Maybe his mum?" Remus guessed.

"Oi, my head is bloody poundin'," Spike grumbled as he woke up. Seeing the table thrown to the floor he gave them all a guilty look. "Guess the wizard found the trigger, eh?"

i "'_Early One Morning_/i_'_ ring any bells for you, Spike?" Remus asked.

"Little English folk ditty," Spike shrugged nonchalantly.

"Who was it that was singing it to you?"

"Me mum," Spike answered gruffly. "What of it?"

"What is it about your mother singing that song that triggers you?" Rupert questioned.

"Ain't nothing 'bout it! Just a little song, that's all," he grimaced.

"Did you have a good relationship with your mother?" Rupert continued.

Spike paused and then shrugged. "She was a good lady. That was her favorite song; she used to sing it 'round the house a lot."

"Spike, listen to me," Rupert pressed sternly. "What is it about your mother that—"

"I dunno. We got on fine. Who are you – Oprah?" Spike answered in annoyance.

"There has to be more to it than that," Rupert stated in exasperation.

"Well, there bloody well isn't," Spike snapped.

"Spike, let me look in your mind again. Maybe I can help you figure it out by looking through your memories," Remus suggested.

Eyes widening, Spike shook his head sharply. "No thank you. I've had enough of this Big Brother business for the day. I need a smoke. Get me outta these things," he said to Buffy as he held up his bound wrists.

Remus sighed. He was happy with the results at his first attempt at Legilimency but wished that Spike would let him proceed further.

For all their sakes.

* * *

Spike took a long drag on his cigarette as he sat on the Summers' back porch. It was a clear night and the stars were shining through brilliantly – it made him think of Dru. She loved starry nights; although the blasted things managed to 'talk' to her whether she was inside or outside. He wondered where she was right now. He had heard that she spent some time in L.A. making Angel's life a living hell – good for her on that, by the way – but he hadn't heard of her whereabouts since. He no longer loved Drusilla but with his soul he felt a fresh sense of pity with fading love towards her. She had made him the creature that he was and – although he felt great guilt towards his evil actions as a vampire – he was happy to be alive, if that was the word.

Soft footsteps interrupted his musings and he looked up to see Luna approaching him. The little bird was decked out in her new clothes that Dawn had recently forced her to purchase after a trip downtown. 'Course, Niblet had taken Crescent to a bohemian shop so Luna looked quite comfortable in her flowing fuschia skirt and knitted bright blue peasant top. And of course her accessories included her wand behind her ear and those damned ugly radish earrings.

"Isn't it a bit late for you to be up, Crescent? Thought that the Slayer had you lot on a strict sleeping schedule?"

Luna gave a Gaelic shrug and settled onto the porch step next to him. "I had strange dreams," she answered in her soft voice. "There were flashes of green light and stars that shined so brightly that my eyes burned." She shivered and Spike reflexively rubbed the thirteen year old's shoulder.

"I imagine you're still having nightmares of that night in the cemetery where that old woman was killed in front of you?" he questioned.

"Yes," she answered after a slight pause. "Sometimes I think I dream about our conversation but something is preventing me from remembering once I wake up. I wish I knew what we said." Then in a softer voice she added, "It makes me wish that my mum was here."

Spike stiffened slightly at the topic that he had been contemplating earlier today. "Why's that, Crescent?"

"Oh, she was so smart. She knew everything. Especially about dreams and various mystical topics. On clear nights like this when I couldn't sleep she would take me out into the meadow behind our house and teach me how to speak to the stars."

Spike was silent for a moment. "Did she now?"

Her lip jutted out stubbornly. "Yes. I assume like everyone else in my life you don't believe me?"

He gave her an alarmed looked. "Heavens no, pet! Bloody hell, sometimes I reckon that you're the only one here who can truly see what is going on."

"Really?" she asked hopefully. "I've never had anyone think I knew what I was talking about. Dawn often seems interested but I know even she can be a skeptic at times."

" 'Course, Crescent," he reaffirmed. "You know, I knew someone once who could talk to the stars. They told her all sorts of things."

"Really?" she said incredulously. "Who? Did you know my mother?"

"Naw. She was a vampire; my sire actually. Dru was an odd bird but she was special. So your mum talked to the stars?"

Luna nodded. "Oh yes. She said my grandmother could as well – but I can't really remember her. She disappeared shortly after mum's death."

"That must have been hard," Spike commented.

The girl fidgeted and toyed with her earring. "Yes, it was. I would love to meet her someday. But no one knew where she went; she never even told father. It's like she disappered."

Silence filled the space between them as they both considered the women they had lost in their lives.

"Spike, may I ask you a question?"

"Sure thing, Crescent. What's on your crafty mind?"

"What happened to your mother? You tensed earlier today when you admitted that your trigger song was one that she sang to you."

Spike felt his heart constrict at the mention of his dead mother and his eyes quickly darted away from hers. "Like I told Giles, 'tis nothin'."

"When you were made a vampire… did you kill her like I read that Angel did?"

Spike stomped out the burning embers of his tossed cigarette. "I'm no sodding poof like Angel just willing to tell my life story all willy-nilly," he grumbled.

"That must have been hard," Luna commented simply. "No matter one's age it is always difficult to lose a mother."

"I didn't i_lose/i_ her," he snapped. "I bloody killed the woman. Drank 'er blood and turned 'eh, alright? Never bleedin' lost her." Guilt plagued his mind and he ran a hand through his bleached hair.

"What was that like?" Luna asked in a soft voice.

"What was that i_like_? /i" Spike asked dubiously. "Are you really bloody asking me that, 'lil one? This ain't some research project, I hope you know."

Luna bit her lip and gave him a sad look. "I just thought that you might want to talk about it," she answered dejectedly.

Instantly Spike felt awful about snapping at the youngest potential. Since their adventure at Willy's almost two weeks ago he had taken the witch under his wing and had grown rather attached to her. It was nice to have someone treat him like a man – like Buffy and Dawn did. Of course, it had taken a long while for Dawn to start treating him normal again – she was very unforgiving after he returned to Sunnydale because of what he had almost done to Buffy.

"Aw, I'm sorry Crescent. Didn't mean it. Just never talked about my mum to anyone before, you know?"

Luna nodded but didn't say anything. Guilt over his inability to graciously accept her attempt at comforting him forced him to continue speaking.

"I loved my mum a lot, mind you. She was the light of my life. But when I turned her she… she said some real awful things to me. Horrid, hateful things. And I staked her before she could attack me."

Spike forced back the tears that threatened to descend. "Don't think she loved me as much as I thought, you know?"

A small, pale hand entwined with his own. "Why would you think she didn't love you? Because she said cruel things?"

"Exactly," he said in a small voice.

"But… If she said it after you turned her then it wasn't really her, right? Isn't that what Buffy says? That when you get vamped 'you die and a vamp sets up shop in your body'?"

Sucking in a gap of air, Spike considered her words. He relived that moment when he turned his mother and listened to her spew hatred at him; the pain of that betrayal and then the pain of loss at staking her.

And he realized that Luna was right.

"You know? I think you're on to something there, Crescent. What my mum said – that was the demon talking," he mused out loud.

Luna gave him a bright smile. "I'm glad that I could help," she said with a yawn.

Spike smiled and gave the girl a kiss on the forehead. "Off to bed with you. I'd hate to get in trouble with the Slayer for keeping you up too late."

"Could we do one thing first?" she asked him with a hint of hesitation.

"What's that?"

"Would you star-gaze with me?"

Spike grinned. "Sure thing, Crescent. Sure thing."

**

* * *

**

**A/N:**

Ah! A minor detour from Sirius and Willow! No worries, they will be back in the next chapter – with Faith.

But for this chapter I wanted to show my own method for handling Spike's trigger while also setting something up for later. Personally, I heart my Seasons 1-3 Scooby Gang and thought the episode where Giles betrayed Buffy while secretly having Wood trying to kill the vamp really was the starting point for Buffy's paranoia about people not having her back and the beginning of the deterioration with the her and the G-man – which then resulted in her relationship with everyone else getting screwy.

Hence, my story has a nicer method of dealing with naughty Spike.

Please review and let me know what you think!


	68. Appearances Can Be Deceiving

**Chapter 68: Appearances Can Be Deceiving **

**A/N:**

**OOOOOPS! I MESSED UP! I AM SO SORRY! I also post this and really *hate* the ffnet chapter upload format (like, i hate it with the passion of a thousand burning suns kinda hate) ANYWAYS I accidentally posted chapter #69 'Tonight the Stars Speak!' as chapter #68. Fuuuuuuuuck. Lo siento if anyone got confused. :(**

**So sorry!**

Some dialogue from the episode 'Dirty Girls' is taken from . A big thank you to them!

* * *

"So, let me get this straight. You're a wand-using wizard, so is your buddy Remus, that chick that the Xan-Man was sexin' it up with, Buffy's 'lil sis, and two of the potential slayers?" Faith summarized in the back seat of Willow's rental car.

"Yes," Sirius confirmed.

Faith leaned forward and stuck her head in the space between Willow and Sirius' seats. "So," she drawled as she waggled her eyebrows, "tell me Red, how you likin' this i_magic stick/i_ of Sirius'?" she snickered.

Sirius began laughing but off of Willow's glare his laughter quickly dissolved into a set of coughs. Willow had told him before they left Angel's that even though Sunnydale needed Faith, Willow didn't really want her there. His girlfriend still had major issues with Faith 'stealing' her friends in high school, for stealing Buffy's body, for being mean to Tara while she was in Buffy's body, and she just overall did not like the escaped convict.

Sirius, meanwhile, thought Faith was a riot and hoped that Willow would get over all that now that Faith was on the same side.

"Really Faith, you're so crude," Willow muttered; her eyes narrowed as she concentrated driving in the dark.

"That's me. Crude and rude," Faith agreed airily as she leaned back in her seat.

"So," Faith changed the subject. "When do ya think the big battle is going to be? 'Cause, 'sides Angelus, I haven't had a good fight in a long time. The Big Bertha's in lock up aren't quite up to my typical standards, ya know?"

Sirius snorted. "Big Bertha may not have been up to your standards but at least you got to be in a few brawls."

"Yeah. Being stuck in prison is definitely what I like to do for kicks," Faith said sarcastically.

"Oh," Sirius tossed her a guilty smile. "Forgot to tell you. I was in a wizarding prison, Azkaban, for twelve years."

"Twelve years?" Faith exclaimed with wide eyes. "Holy fuck! What the hell did you do time for?"

"I'm innocent, mind you, but they thought I killed thirteen people with a dark curse," Sirius shrugged. So much time had passed and with Willow, Harry, Remus, and the others his life was much happier now, but he still his muscles would tense at the memory of Azkaban.

Faith let out a low whistle. "Da-amn. That sucks. So you didn't get into any brawls there?"

"No," he replied as he gave her a thin smile. "Azkaban is a lot different from muggle prisons. They, ah, feel the need to take special precautions."

"Like?" Faith prompted.

Willow shot Sirius a look that let him know that he was free to change the subject; she knew how much he disliked talking about that place. But he didn't mind so much with Faith – weren't too many people he knew who even had a basic idea of what being locked up truly meant.

"In England we have these creatures called dementors. Their mere presence sucks out a person's happiness. At Azkaban those creatures were the guards." Sirius shrugged; hoping that Faith could put two and two together.

"Fuck."

"Yeah."

"Not to mention," Willow added in that dark voice that always seemed to come about when discussing the dementors. "Those things can suck out a person's soul, which is something they do for the worst offenders. That's what they want to do to Sirius if they ever capture him again."

"Well, guess we can't let that happen, can we? Have'ta say, I'm kinda interested in these dementor things – they sound like a good fight. Maybe after we save the Hellmouth we can take a vay-cay to merry old England?" Faith grinned.

Sirius laughed. "Sounds good to me. I'm always up for causing some mayhem."

"Oh my goddess!" Willow screamed as she slammed on the brakes.

Sirius braced himself against the dashboard and gave her a shocked look. "Willow? What is it?"

She pointed out the window. "There's a girl lying in the middle of the road."

* * *

"You know, you really don't have to play all bodyguard on me," Faith complained as she and Sirius walked through Sunnydale on their way to find Buffy. "I'm a big girl and all."

"It's not safe for any of us to be out alone," he countered.

"Yeah, or maybe you're here because Red told you to come with so I play nice with her bestest while she watches over that potential we found," Faith snorted.

"Yeah, maybe a little bit of that," Sirius admitted with a smirk. "Of course, you do have quite the interesting reputation."

"That is my trademark," she grunted. "Reputation Girl and all that. You afraid of me?" she asked with an amused smile and a raised eyebrow.

Sirius let out a barking laugh. "Takes a lot to frighten me."

Faith glanced over at him and nodded. "Yeah, figured that – what with the Depress-O-Demons living with ya for twelve years. How'd you deal with that? I mean, you were all Innocent Dude and shouldn't have been there in the first place."

Without waiting for an answer she shook her head and went on. "Now me? I knew I was in the wrong – still am in the wrong – and I chose to go there. But you? You were freaking innocent!"

"Yeah, I was. Innocent of what they condemned me for anyway. That helped me keep my sanity. But at the same time I still feel – felt – guilty over other things I did that cost lives." Sirius shrugged. "Guess I felt I deserved it sometimes."

Faith considered that for a moment and nodded. "Yeah, I can get that. I mean, the cops only know I killed the deputy mayor but they don't know about all the other fucked up shit I did."

A faraway look came into her eyes. "Sometimes I don't think all the prison time in the world will redeem me.

"'Course," she said in a lighter tone, "that's the name of the redemption game, according to Angel."

"Well, you're here to help now," Sirius said as they approached the cemetery. "That's got to count for something."

Faith snorted. "Yeah. Here's hoping. Of course, I doubt any of the Sunny D regulars want me around."

Sirius glanced over at Faith and was surprised by the amount of vulnerability in her eyes – she really was uncomfortable being back here. Then, as quick as he noticed it, it was replaced with an easy-going smile.

"What?" she asked when she noticed him staring.

"Nothing," he shrugged. "I just imagine it's got to be pretty hard for you being back at your old stomping grounds."

Faith smirked and raised an eyebrow. "You playing the part of the wise wizard now, Sirius?"

He let out a barking laugh as he imagined himself dressed in Dumbledore's garish robes and stroking a long silver beard. "No, certainly not. I have to say, it is rather admirable that you're even here. I haven't had the courage to go back to certain parts of England yet since escaping."

Faith's eyes widened in surprise at his compliment. "Yeah, well it's whatever," she shrugged. "Gotta get it done; big booming evil and all. Plus, I'm still pissed that this First dude tried to turn me into shish kabob."

Sirius snorted. He wasn't surprised that Faith wasn't one to take positive feedback well.

"So what parts are you afraid to go back to?"

"I never said I was i_afraid/i,"_ he scowled.

"S'kay, so what are your very manly and courageous reasons for avoiding certain parts of England?" she grinned with a devilish gleam in her eye.

"Eh, just haven't been to see the graves of my old friends. And their former house that's near there," he casually informed her.

Her doe brown eyes raked over his face intently. "Those the friends whose lives you feel you cost?"

i"_Now/i_ look who's being all analytical," he said with a smirk and raised brows.

"Aw, you know me – well, okay, you don't – but I like to be unique. Can't have anyone stealing the Hero with a Dark Past trophy from me!" she laughed gaily and Sirius joined.

"Yeah, hero I am not, so no problems there. And to answer your question, yes. Long story but I was supposed to be the Secret-Keeper for my best friends – that's a spell that made me the only person to know the whereabouts of their house," he added at her confused look. "Voldemort was an evil wizard that was after them so they needed to be hid. Of course, I got this genius idea that Voldemort would know to look for me so I suggested our other friend Peter, who accepted. Turns out that Peter was a spy and doled out the information to his lord. James and Lily were murdered on Halloween and only their infant son Harry survived."

Sirius took a deep breath and suppressed the emotions that always threatened to rise up at that memory.

"That sucks."

Sirius laughed at her brief summarization of feelings. "Yeah, it does."

"Still though, good to know that the trophy is mine," she added casually as her alert eyes roamed over the area.

"Is that so?"

Faith caught his eyes for a moment and shrugged slightly. "Listen, I'm not discarding the pain you feel or any of that jazz, first off."

"Okay," he said uneasily.

"But the way I figure it," she continued. "Is that none of that was your fault. You couldn't have known this Peter dude was a damned dirty spy and you were only thinking in the best interests of your friends. Plus, they were the ones who accepted Peter as the magical Secret-Keeper person."

"So you're saying that it was i_their/i_ fault?" Sirius said hotly.

Faith rolled her eyes and smacked his upside his head. "No, and don't get all drama queen on me. After all, I just got done living with only females for about three years. Basically, I just think you shouldn't flog yourself for fun anymore over something that you couldn't prevent.

"Unless," she added with a salacious grin, "that's something you and Red are into?"

Her light remark caused him to chuckle and his anger dissipated. "No comment," he grinned

Faith's eyebrows almost reached her hairline. "Damn! So you and Red into sharing?" she winked with a laugh.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "No thanks," he said dryly. "I already got one girl trying to horn in on Willow."

"Re-eally? Who? Don't tell me Buffy's all gone with the gay, too?"

Letting out a barking laugh, Sirius shook his head. "No. It's one of the potentials – Kennedy."

"Shame," Faith smirked. "That could have been fun."

Sirius' eyebrows rose as he got a very sinful mental image of Buffy, Faith, and Willow naked on a bed, but before he could whip a quip at her the slayer stilled like a panther spotting its jungle prey and held up a hand for silence.

"Hear that?"

"Um…"

"BRB yo!" She shouted as she took off running into the cemetery.

The last thing he needed was Faith starting trouble like Willow was worried about so Sirius began following her. Following the sounds of running, grunting, and fighting he emerged onto the scene just as Buffy punched Faith's face hard enough to send the other slayer sprawling on the ground.

"Sorry, Faith. I didn't realize that was you," Buffy said innocently.

"It's all right, B. Luckily, you still punch like you used to," Faith said evenly as she stood up quickly.

"Buffy! Wait, Faith is with us," Sirius shouted before anything else could happen.

"Us?" Buffy glared at Faith for a moment before turning to Spike. "You OK?"

"Yeah. Terrific," he answered.

"Oh, and hey Sirius. How was the trip here?" Buffy greeted him warmly.

"Whoa, wait a minute," Faith said in a shocked voice as she pointed to Spike. "Are you protecting vampires? Are you the bad slayer now?" She grinned. "Am I the good slayer now?"

"He's with me. He has a soul," Buffy informed her.

"Oh, he's like Angel?" Faith asked as she glanced at Spike.

Sirius snickered – he knew how much Spike detested Angel comparisons.

"No!" Spike argued derisively as his hands balled into fists.

"Sort of," Buffy added.

"I am nothing like Angel," Spike said stubbornly.

"He fights on my side." Buffy shrugged and looked at Faith. "Which is more than I can say for some of us."

"Yeah, well if he's so good, what's he doing chasing down defenseless— " Faith was cut off by a young woman jumping up in vamp-face and attacked Faith.

"That's one of the bad guys," Buffy informed her with a hint of amusement as she crossed her arms.

"You should make 'em wear a sign," Faith grunted as she fought the vampire. She reached into Buffy's pocket full of stakes and grabbed one. "May I? Thanks."

Sirius walked up to Buffy. "Didn't Willow call you and tell you that we were bringing Faith?" he asked in confusion.

Buffy smirked at him. "Yeah, she did. But remembering that would have taken all the fun out of punching her."

Sirius chuckled and rocked back and forth on his heels. Slayers really were a violent lot – he made a mental note to avoid getting on Buffy's bad side; pranks excluded of course.

* * *

"Sirius!" Dawn squealed as he opened the door. His favorite pupil launched herself at him and enveloped him in a tight embrace.

"Hey there, Dawn," he said with a beaming smile as he set her down. "That's quite a greeting for being gone only two weeks. Maybe I should leave more often?"

She smacked his arm. "Don't you dare. Remus has been terribly cruel to me and Luna – oh my gosh you should _see_ all the freaking work he's assigned us."

"And to think, back when I started teaching you in October you thought i_I/i_ was cruel."

"Yeah, well, grass is always greener and all that," she shrugged with a smile. "Where's Willow?"

"Hospital with a potential we found. I just left Buffy, Spike, Faith, and the potentials in the cemetery for some training lessons."

"Whoa, potential? Hospital? And Faith?" she asked quickly.

"Yeah, we found one practically gutted on the road. Willow's waiting for her to wake up. And yes, we brought Faith back from L.A. where she was helping Angel."

"Hmmmph," Dawn grunted crankily.

"Interesting how that seems to be the reaction people have with Faith," Sirius observed.

"Yeah? Well you try being happy that the girl who tried to kill your sister is here," Dawn said dryly.

"Fair enough," Sirius shrugged.

"Sirius! I thought I heard you. How are you?" Remus asked him as he appeared in the living room.

"Better," Sirius shrugged. He knew that Remus meant more than just how he was at that moment – they never had a chance to talk after he was tortured.

"Well I just put some tea on. Join me?"

"Of course, Moony."

"Cool, I'm thirsty too," Dawn nodded eagerly.

Remus gave her a pointed look. "Don't you have some homework to do? I imagine since your high school has essentially closed down your lack of regular schoolwork should help you focus on your witchcraft."

Dawn let out a dramatic sigh. "Fi-ine." She turned to Sirius with a sad puppy face. "See what I told you? Cruel." Then she bounded up the stairs as Sirius burst into laughter.

"I imagine our talented pupil was expressing her dissatisfaction with her current work load?" Remus asked dryly as they made their way into the empty kitchen.

"Who? Dawn?" Sirius asked innocently before laughing. "Why the increase, Moony?"

"War's coming, Padfoot. I just want her and Luna to be as ready as possible," Remus shrugged.

"Any new information?"

"No," Remus shook his head. "Things have been quiet since Lucius Malfoy and Alecto Carrow was disposed of. Regardless, I'm sure the First has more in store for us eventually.

"Oh," he added. "Do have one bit of good news – Spike's trigger is no longer active; we tested him yesterday to verify and it seems that he is back to normal."

"Really?" Sirius asked in shock. "How did that happen?"

"I performed Legilimency on him to retrieve the memory that triggers his violent outbursts—"

"Wait a moment. You can do that? Damn, Moony, you've been holding out on me!"

Remus rolled his eyes. "Actually I studied it in a book and Spike was my first ever subject. It wasn't as hard as I expected but then again Spike was allowing me to access his mind so I'm sure it was much easier than normal."

"Still though, that's quite a feat. Good job!"

Remus shrugged again; he never did like acknowledgement of his accomplishments. "Yes, well, it didn't go as perfect as I would have liked."

"How so?"

He was silent for a moment before continuing. "While I was scanning Spike's memories I saw him having sex with Anya."

"Oh." Well fuck, Sirius didn't know what to say to that.

"Anya later explained to me that it happened last year after Xander left her at the altar, but still…" Remus shrugged. "Not something I really wanted to have a bloody image of."

"Of course," Sirius said in a soft voice. Poor Moony, he really didn't have the best luck with women. "So, how are you and Anya then?"

"Bloody hell, Padfoot. I've got no bloody clue," Remus sighed in irritation. "I'm pissed that she never told me about Spike, though I suppose I can overlook that, but you know what she bloody said to me the other day?"

"What?"

"She doesn't consider me to be her boyfriend or to be dating."

"And that's bad?"

"Of course it is, you idiot! It's like I'm nothing to her but a flesh and blood sex toy!" Remus' face was flushed and he was gripping his tea cup so tightly that Sirius was afraid that he was going to shatter it.

"Moony, I'm sure she didn't mean it like that," he consoled. "Anya likes you, I can tell. Willow can too; she even told me."

Remus just shrugged. "I know I shouldn't even care. I mean, in the beginning I didn't even like the bloody crazed woman, but…" he shrugged helplessly again.

"She give you a reason at least?"

"Said she didn't want to get hurt again like Xander hurt her." Remus took in a deep breath and gave Sirius a weak smile. "Hell, I'm sorry mate. Here I am rambling about a stupid woman problem and haven't even heard about how the past two weeks have been for you. So, how have things been?"

Sirius gave a wan smile. "Trust me, I'd prefer your woman troubles any day."

Remus rolled his eyes and smiled. "No, really Padfoot, how have you been?" he pressed.

"You mean after enduring hours of torture and seeing my girlfriend go dark magic crazy?" He raised his eyebrows. "I've been better."

"Understatement, much?" Remus snorted; causing Sirius to laugh at the ridiculousness of his words.

"Certainly not your average problem."

"Indeed not."

"I got to see Harry though," Sirius smiled.

"Did you? Lucky. How was he?" Remus leaned forward in his chair and waited for the update.

"Bloody Daily Prophet has some annoying reporter bothering him but he's fine otherwise." Sirius chuckled at the memory of Willow's victory dance that she performed after Harry left that night. "Seems he's got a crush on Dawn though. It was nice to see him interested in a girl for a change. He practically had Willow clapping her hands in glee when he asked if Dawn could attend Hogwarts."

Remus let out a stream of laughter. "Well with her progression over these last six months I certainly don't see why not. Although, then again, she's certainly not ready for her age group, yet. I would place her as a beginning fourth year in practical application as of now – with the exception of DADA; she's been excelling at sixth year spells there – with maybe as a third year in theory. Still though, not bad for only six months of study. The girl is a natural talent."

"She is," Sirius said with a proud smile. "Of course, it helps that she had two of the greatest wizards ever to teach her."

Their laughter was interrupted by Kennedy entering the kitchen through the back door with a young, wide-eyed girl. Immediately Sirius tensed at her presence and had to force himself not to hex the bitchy witch. Sure, Willow had explained to him that Amy's dark spell work had brought up Willow and Kennedy's dark sides as she tried to turn them to her side, but Sirius would never forgive Kennedy for urging Willow's murderous ways in the warehouse.

Then again, it didn't help that he already hated the young woman.

"Hey guys," Kennedy gave them an uncomfortable smile. "This is Yelena from Russia. She just arrived via the portkey Luke and I set up."

"Hello there!" Yelena said enthusiastically. She was a buxom young woman of maybe eighteen and had a smile as bright as her white-blond hair.

"Hello Yelena," Remus greeted with a warm smile.

"Hi Yelena. I'm afraid the only Russian word I know is 'vodka'," Sirius grinned as he pronounced it with a thick Russian accent that made it sound like 'vode-ka'.

Yelena giggled. "That is alright. Kennedy did some spell so I can understand English. However, in my knapsack I did bring some 'vode-ka' that is distilled in my hometown if you're interested."

Sirius and Remus shared a look. "We may have to take you up on that," Sirius grinned.

"Okay, we're going to get settled in," Kennedy announced. But before she left the room the potential turned around to face Sirius.

"By the way, how are you?" she asked kindly.

Sirius gave her a blank face as he examined every detail of her face as he tried to find something that proved she wasn't being sincere.

"Better than ever," he finally answered.

"Good," she smiled. "I'm glad. Okay, see you two later."

Once she was gone Sirius gave Remus a raised eyebrow. "That was different."

"She's been quite a bit nicer these last two weeks. Maybe it was true that Amy did adversely affect her and Willow."

"Yeah." Sirius glanced at the door where Kennedy had exited. "Maybe."

* * *

"Is this the potential slayer you all found?" a smooth baritone voice asked from behind her.

Buffy turned and gave Luke a small smile as he entered the hospital room of Shannon, the girl that Willow had found on the road – thanks to her wallet in her pocket they knew her name. Since receiving the message from Faith and Sirius, Buffy had gone to meet up with Willow in the hospital after their training session. After seeing Shannon's severe wounds she had called Luke – Willow had given him a enhanced cell phone that worked in magical environments so they could get a hold of him when needed – and asked for his help. Now that it was the next day and Shannon had gone through a successful surgery so now Buffy hoped that Luke could completely heal her.

"Yes," answered Willow from her position in the chair next to Shannon's bed. "She was gutted by someone – a Bringer I assume – and left for dead on the road."

"The docs here did some surgery but they said the recovery time will be six weeks. Obviously we can't afford that," Buffy added.

"Of course. Although I'm surprised that you just didn't have Willow do something?" he asked as his eyes peered at the red-haired witch.

Willow nervously wrung her hands and stared at the floor. "Healing spells, especially ones as intense as this, take a lot of energy. I'm still not up to par after… you know. Besides, I'd rather stay away from the intense spells for a while."

Buffy gave her a soft look. She hated that Willow had to go through all this – this constant battle of willpower and then fear after she failed.

"No problem. All OSS Agents are trained in the arts of healing. We're not as skilled as a professional healer but can deal with battle wounds. I've brought some salve and can do the proper spells if you like," he told them.

Buffy sighed. On one hand she was ecstatic that she wasn't in this battle alone and that someone outside her friends supported her – it was like in the beginning when The Initiative supported her work. On the other hand, she despised asking for help from them – after all, look how things had turned out with The Initiative!

But so far Luke had regained her trust with his contributions and she hoped for the best.

"Please," she simply said.

Luke nodded and went to Shannon's bedside. As he began to heal the teenage girl, Buffy couldn't help but take advantage of this point to blatantly check him out. Just like when she first met him at The Bronze she found him quite the 'salty goodness', as Cordy used to say. Tonight he was wearing black plants – that showed off a cute butt – and a tight black short-sleeve t-shirt that displayed an impressive set of upper body muscles. Buffy assumed all wizards would be out of shape after what Sirius had told her about the lack of focus on physical fighting but she assumed OSS Agents were probably different since they had to fight off the dark creatures and wizards.

"Buffy?" he questioned with a raised brow and a small smirk.

It was then she realized that he had been trying to get her attention while she stared at his backside – Willow was covering up her laughter on the opposite side of the bed.

"Ah, yeah?" she asked quickly as she felt her neck flush.

"I think she's coming to. You should be able to question her soon. Of course, in the meantime," he drawled, "you're free to continue enjoying the view."

Buffy fought the urge to smack that condescending grin off his face. "I definitely was not enjoying anything," she said in an irate voice. "Besides, I was just looking at your clothes. What's up with the look? You moonlighting as a mime? 'Cause if you are, that is super creepy."

"Mime?"

"They dress all in black, don't talk, and use only their hands to communicate," Willow informed him with a smile.

"Really?" he grinned. "Well, in that case I'd be happy to be a mime if that's what you'd like, Buffy. I've been told that I am _excellent_ at communicating with my hands. Interested?"

"Ugh, no thanks," Buffy rolled her eyes – even as a part of her couldn't help but visualize him doing so. But Buffy so did not need to go there. Besides, she still had whatever was going on with Spike. It wasn't as if they ever engaged in anything physical but she did care for him – he was, after all, the only person she could really talk to. Of course, she just wasn't sure if what she felt for him was romantic love or just a friendship love.

Besides, Luke was positively the most annoying man on the planet so it really didn't matter just how attractive he looked when his black McDreamy-type hair fell into his eyes like that.

Buffy was saved by further thoughts when a small, raspy voice came from the bed.

"Where am I?"

"You're in a hospital but you're all better now, right Luke?" Willow said gently.

"Yes, you are completely healed but you will be groggy for the rest of the day," he said.

"Oh thank god," she whispered. "I thought he was going to kill me."

"He?" Buffy asked as her ears perked up. Usually no one would describe the Bringers as a 'he'. A 'creepy eyeless freak' maybe, but not he.

Shannon shivered and began crying. "I-I was running away from these Bringers after my grandfather sent me to Sunnydale – he used to be a watcher and saw the signs I guess. Then this truck came and I thought I was saved. The dr-driver, he-he was a priest, ya know? Or at least he dressed like one," she added bitterly.

"And he wasn't?" Buffy asked.

"No-no. He said his name was Caleb and those eyeless guys were working for him. Then he also called me a whore and said that I was 'dirty', like all girls. He said all this right before he burned me." Shannon pealed back a bandage on her neck and displayed a circular burn. Willow took a picture of it in order to document the mark.

"He also told me to give the slayer a message before he stabbed me and threw me out the door." Shannon sniffled and looked up at them. "Are you guys with her, the slayer?"

Buffy's mouth set into a thin line and she nodded. "I'm the Slayer. What did he tell you?"

"He said, 'I have something of yours.'"

* * *

A/N:

Review, por favor!


	69. Tonight the Stars Speak!

Tonight the Stars Speak!

* * *

**A/N: **

**OOOOOPS! I MESSED UP! I AM SO SORRY! I also post this and really *hate* the ffnet chapter upload format (like, i hate it with the passion of a thousand burning suns kinda hate) ANYWAYS I accidentally posted chapter #69 'Tonight the Stars Speak!' as chapter #68. Fuuuuuuuuck. Lo siento if anyone got confused. :(**

**So now things are in the right order... Be sure to check out #68 if you already read this!**

**SORRY!**

First, I really just want to say **'Thank You' **to whoever nominated me for 'Best New Author' in the Crossing Over Awards at . I'm gonna make a gamble and say it was probably someone who reads this story – maybe from TtH or FFNet so "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" You have no idea how much I appreciate it. I'm not sure if I'll win (there are a ton of great authors on this site) but regardless—just knowing that one person really enjoys my writing makes me want to do a happy dance… wait, no, a jig! *lala*jig*jig*lala* :D

Some dialogue from the episode 'Dirty Girls' is taken from . A big thank you to them!

Also, I decided from now on to name my OC potentials after my reviewers and rec'ers. Of course, please don't be sad if I don't use you or if you die… Most of the OC potentials will die after all… But I just wanted to give y'all a shout out and also not go crazy by trying to think of random names ;)

Thanks for reading & reviewing!

* * *

Two hours had passed since Buffy had heard the message intended for her by Caleb.

Immediately her mind had raced with ideas as she tried to think of what his message meant.

Then Buffy Summers decided that she was done thinking. She was tired of thinking and tired of waiting.

Now was the time for action.

* * *

Buffy had called all of the members of the household to gather for an emergency meeting. Now they were all packed into the living room where it was standing capacity only. Even with all of the magical improvements there were still forty potentials plus the core Scoobies, Robin Wood, and Luke Matthews. Buffy stood in front of them all and felt the weight of their expectations upon her as they waited for her to begin speaking.

She took a deep breath; sure of what she was about to say but so exhausted of her responsibility at the same time.

"We've got a new player in town. Dresses like a preacher. Calls himself Caleb. Looks like he's working for the First. He's taunting us, calling us out. Says he's got something of mine."

Buffy looked each of her friends and the potentials in the eyes as she continued; so that they could understand the severity of what was going on.

"Could be another girl, could be something else. Could even be that weapon that Luke's book talked about – that scythe. Don't know, don't care. I'm tired of talking. I'm tired of training. He's got something of mine? Fine. I'm getting it back, and you guys are coming with me."

* * *

After Buffy's proclamation the potentials had gone into the training room with Vi and Rona leading the session as the core people stayed in the living room to talk strategy. Everyone was still standing; restless after Buffy's dramatic announcement. Willow intertwined her fingers with Sirius' as she leaned on him. Anya's hand rested on Remus' belt comfortably yet the werewolf's stance was rather stiff; as if he was uncomfortable with her proximity. Xander and Giles stood to Willow's other side and both appeared quite pensive and full of unsaid words. Spike and Faith stood with crossed arms on Buffy's other side and waited expectantly for Buffy to speak.

Buffy folded her arms and looked at them all. "We need to start arming the girls. I wanna be ready to move when we find him."

"We don't even know where we're going," Willow said in annoyance. She was really frustrated that Buffy was far too ready to jump into whatever the First was planning – something felt wrong to her.

"'S why I figured we'd do a little recon first." Buffy glanced at Faith. "You up for it?"

"Point me where you want me," Faith told her matter-of-factly. Faith was, after all, at her best when she was in motion and not stuck inside a house.

"And you're certain this is the best course of action?" Giles questioned Buffy. "You don't even know what this man has of yours—if he, in fact, has anything."

"It could be a girl, a potential trying to get to us," Buffy argued expressively.

"Could be a stapler," Giles countered with a raised eyebrow.

"Let's not forget that is a possibility that he has the scythe," Luke offered. "The book explaining it and the role of the Guardians was found in the Valley of the Kings but there's no reason why it couldn't be here. After all, my five agents haven't been able to find it or anything related to it along the Nile yet. I doubt it just disappeared."

"Thank you, Luke," Buffy said pointedly. "See?" she said to Giles. "Could be a mystical weapon even. We have to go there."

"With the girls? Most of whom have yet to be in the field, let alone in a life or death situation," Giles reminded her.

Buffy let out a dramatic sigh and threw up her arms. "Then it's time we test them. Look, I'll just take the ones that have been here the longest. The rest can stay behind."

"Could be that's just what he wants you to do—the old bait-and-switch," Spike opined.

"Yeah, he lures us away and then kills the girls we leave behind," Willow said as she raised a skeptical brow.

Buffy turned towards Willow and gave her a pleading look. "I know. That's why I need you to stay here with them. You're my most powerful weapon, Will. I know you can keep them safe if anything happens."

Willow frowned. There it was again – that pressure. "I might be a powerful weapon – but for who? I'm not exactly Stable Lady right now."

"Will, I trust in you," Buffy swore to her with emotion. "Besides, Sirius can stay with you to help keep you centered."

"Wait," Sirius interjected. He gave Willow a look and said, "It's not as if I don't want to stay with you, Willow, but Buffy," he turned towards the slayer, "if there's a fight I want in. I'm not content sitting on the Quidditch sidelines anymore. After what happened, I want to get some payback."

Buffy nodded. "Fine. We could use some magic on our side. In fact, are you game, Luke?"

"You kidding me?" he asked incredulously. "I've been waiting for this ever since the Bringers killed my Aunt Sophia."

"Remus? Anya? You're both good with the magics."

"Oh, no, I am not good. A couple hexes and curses here, yes. But it's been a thousand years and Remus has only been teaching me these last three months. I'm not ready for the sharp sharp knives again," she said adamantly. "Besides, I can help Willow here," she added brightly.

"If Padfoot's going then of course I am. Can't give him something to brag about over me," Remus grinned at his former roommate.

"Hold on," Xander said gently. "An unknown man breezes into town, says he has something of yours. Buffy, this thing's got "trap" written all over it. Remember the start of junior year? When the Master's vamps tricked you by sending you to The Bronze while they kidnapped us in order to use our blood? This is just like that."

"He won't be expecting a full attack—not this soon," Buffy shook her head. "That's why we have to move," she finished passionately.

"We know nothing about this man. We cannot go into battle unprepared. We have to have more time," Giles added strongly.

"Giles, we don't have time. And you're not going into battle. I need you to stay behind with the others. If something happens, then you will need to train the remaining girls."

Giles sighed and Willow felt like joining him. She always believed in her friend but this plan made her tummy feel uneasy – she hoped it worked out.

* * *

Willow sat cross-legged in the back yard while Remus and Sirius practiced their dueling in anticipation for tonight's attack. Her original intention had been to go outside and meditate but seeing Sirius in battle mode couldn't help but distract her. She knew that he was the kind of man who needed to take action and fight but a selfish part of her wanted him to stay in tonight. No matter what Buffy said, Willow could not help but feel this sense of dread at what tonight would bring.

After what happened a couple weeks ago she did not even want to consider what might happen if Sirius was killed in battle.

Shaking away her fears, Willow greeted Anya as the newfound witch walked outside to sit down and join her. "Hey Anya."

"Hello," she replied; but her eyes were trained on Remus. "Are you mediating in an attempt to get your mind off Sirius' potential early death?"

"Anya!" she snapped with a disgusted look. "Honestly, do you even_ think_ about things before you open your mouth?"

"What?" Anya turned to here with her lips parted in an 'O' shape. "Oh, you're offended. Don't be," she snorted with a shrug. "I was actually just going to ask you if it works and if you can show me some of your 'oooom' type things."

"Oh." Willow pursed her lips. "Um, well, if you want to know if it works I 'spose it can. That is, if you can concentrate. But, why are you asking me about this? Are you worried about Remus?"

Glancing at Remus – who had just dove to evade Sirius' hex – Anya sighed. "I don't understand why I have to fall for these damned stupid heroic type men. I mean, why? Why do they have to risk their lives? It's not like they even get a shiny medal or a bag full of money like on TV! It's just stupid," she grumbled.

"Anya." Willow said softly as she laid her hand over the other woman's arm. "It'll be fine."

"Lying is not one of your best attributes, Willow," Anya said with a skeptical look. "You're all tense and I can tell that you are holding back from hexing Sirius into a cage so he'll stay home."

Willow laughed; partly because Anya was right and partly because it was a funny image. "Maybe," she admitted.

"See, what I hate is how they are both so competitive with each other. I mean, look at them now!"

Sure enough the two men who goading each other and producing bigger and bigger spells in an attempt to out-do one another.

"With that kind of attitude I can see Remus doing something ridiculously stupid and getting himself killed," she huffed in annoyance.

Willow studied the hard lines of Anya's face as she clenched her jaw at the idea of Remus dying and the way her eyes softened as she watched him. "You love him, don't you?"

Anya looked at her in alarm and gasped. "What? No. Noo. What are you thinking, you crazy lesbian turned bi-sexual?"

Covering her mouth with her hand, Willow giggled. "Aw, Anya that is so cute! I'm so happy for you too! And here I thought he was just your friend with benefits."

Scowling at her, Anya hissed, "Shut up!" as her eyes nervously darted towards the wizards.

"He was just my orgasm friend because hey! – he was the only available penis in the house. And then…" Anya trailed off and shrugged with a slightly silly smile.

"And then?" Willow prompted her.

"Remus is a good man. He actually finds the way I speak to be charming and he's very patient with the young annoying children. He's rather brave and very well-educated, and of course he is a total animal in the sack. All I gotta say is, thank god he can't transmit that werewolf thing through biting!" Anya grinned as she elbowed Willow softly.

Willow laughed and clapped her hands. "Well that's awesome. Have you told him?"

Instantly Anya's face was wiped clean of emotion. "Oh no," she shook her head. "I am not and neither will you, Willow Rosenberg. And don't you be telling Sirius either!"

"What? Why?"

"Because. Remus and I have a nice casual thing right now. He likes me. I like him—"

"Love him." Willow corrected.

"Whatever," Anya rolled her eyes. "Anyways, it is extremely likely that we will all die soon from the First so there really is no point. Plus, even if we do live we'll have to deal with all those stupid human rituals of dating and will get engaged and then horrible things will happen."

Willow knew by horrible things she meant a reenactment of one of Xander's worst decisions.

"You know, Anya, not every relationship is like that. And I love Xander but he is less mature and just younger than Remus – I don't think you have to worry about any wedding day deja-vu with him."

"Bah," Anya scowled. "I don't care what you say, I am through with relationships. And marriages. Besides, you're one to talk. You and Sirius are joined at the hip and I don't hear any wedding announcements yet."

"What? Oh, well, that's different." Willow noticed Anya's arched brow and shrugged. "Sirius and I love each other but I don't feel old enough to get married. I always thought I'd get married in my late 20s, after I obtained my doctorate or something."

"Hmmm."

"Don't 'hmmm' me! Geez," Willow grumbled. She would have said more but the wizards had finished their practice and were heading their way.

"Hey!" Sirius said jovially. "Did you see me hit Moony with that itching hex? It was hilarious."

"Oh yes, I would say it was almost as funny as me hitting you with that hex that made you only walk backwards," Remus said dryly with a smirk.

"Well you two better save up your energy for tonight," Willow grinned – but on the inside she was frowning.

"Energy, semergy. A good warm-up is good for you! In fact, Remus let us go upstairs and have some rousing good-luck sex before your deadly adventure tonight!" Anya said forcefully as she grabbed Remus' arm.

"Hmm. Now is that a question or an order?" Remus mused with a small grin that played along his lips.

Anya rose up on her toes and gave him such a passionate kiss that both Sirius and Willow felt obligated to look away.

"An order," she smiled saucily once they were finished.

"Yes Ma'am!" Remus saluted her with a wide grin. "See ya later tonight when we meet up with Luke!" he told Sirius as he and Anya raced into the house.

"They are an interesting pair," Sirius laughed as he shook his head in wonder.

Willow giggled – gosh did she want to spill Anya's secret to Sirius! "They sure are."

Sirius grabbed Willow's hands in his own and pulled her close. "Pretty smart too. Gotta say, that sounds like a good battle strategy to me," he commented with a lopsided smile.

"Oh, I've heard better," Willow said solemnly.

"What's that?"

"Let's conserve your energy by taking a nap!" she joked.

"What?" he howled with mock-pain. "That's no fun!"

"Oh, I don't know. I do love a good nap time," she said innocently.

"Willow," he pleaded with his trademark puppy-dog eyes as she laughed away.

"Yes," she asked as she pecked him softly on the lips.

"I'm about to face who knows what and do you really want your last memory of me to be of me sleeping?" he asked her with wide grey eyes that sparkled with humor.

"Well…" she trailed off as her finger tapped her lips while she pretended to ponder.

"That's it," Sirius growled. He swept her up in his arms and with a sharp Crack! he apparated to their room.

"Why you barbarian, I'm surprised you didn't pull me by my hair before apparating to your cave," Willow teased as Sirius effortlessly tossed her onto the bed.

"Now that's an idea," he mused with a slight smile as he crawled onto the bed.

Willow laughed huskily as Sirius propped himself on his elbows as he laid above her. After a tender kiss he sucked gently on her lower lip and Willow shivered in delight.

"Sirius?" she whispered.

"Yes?" he asked as his teeth grazed her neck.

"Will you promise just to be careful for me tonight? I-I'm not sure what I would do. Or well, we know what I would do, obviously, and that would not be pretty. I don't want to try for the Elvira look and be the new fast food restaurant for hungry sea monsters, ya know?"

"Will," he breathed as he gazed at her with soft eyes. "If you don't want me to go, just say the word."

"No," she shook her head. "You wouldn't be you if you didn't enjoy death-defying things. Just," she shrugged. "Be careful, mmkay?"

"Mmkay," Sirius repeated with a smirk as he kissed her again. "You know me."

"Yeah, that's why I asked," Willow rolled her eyes with a matching smirk.

* * *

Willow walked through the bustling house as everyone prepared for battle. Buffy and Faith had just arrived back from their recon and discovered that all the Bringers were hanging out at an old vineyard on the other side of town – likely Caleb would be there. Now Willow was just trying to find Sirius, Remus, and Luke – the three had taken off an hour ago to go over strategy. Since they could use magic they wanted to develop tactics that would benefit Buffy's simple plan of sticking the Bringers and Caleb with pointy objects.

After searching through the house she decided to check the backyard. Buffy had contemplated taking Buckbeak with them to the vineyard but decided to keep him here since they didn't know what they were going to face. As Willow entered the backyard she saw Buckbeak lying down with his head curled to the side as he slept. It was really pretty cute – after their experience two weeks ago Willow had a newfound love for the hippogriff.

"Sirius? Remus? Luke? Buffy's ready to leave!" Willow called. Just when she was about to leave the backyard she heard ragged breathing.

"What the hell?" she muttered as a wave of apprehension sent goosebumps rippling over her arms. Peering around a thick oak tree she saw the still forms of the three wizards – all who had identical slash marks across their abdomen.

Immediately her stomach plummeted as the worst possible thoughts filled her mind to a deafening level.

"Oh my goddess!" she gasped. She used her magic to send a mental message to alert Buffy and went to work examining the men. Their cuts were deep and bleeding profusely. After a talk after the hospital visit with Luke she had a new idea on how to heal the men without using too much energy and conjured a container of healing salve from the supplies Anya had purchased in Columbia Village.

Quickly she tore off their shirts and began applying the salve that magically closed open wounds and repaired the internal damage. She prayed silently that the salve would be enough and she tried to still her shaky fingers.

"Willow? What happened?" Buffy asked as she rushed outside; Anya, Dawn, and Luna behind her.

"I don't know," Willow answered in frantic voice. "I found them here. They should heal alright- already I see the salve working – but with wounds of this magnitude I'm not sure how long until they wake up – healing takes a lot of energy."

"Oh my god!" Anya cried out as she knelt at Remus' side. Tears sprung to her eyes as she gently caressed his cheek. "He'll be okay, right?"

"Yeah, he'll be fine," Willow gently told her; touched by Anya's reaction.

"Who did this?" Dawn asked angrily. "How did the Bringers get in her?"

Willow shrugged, fighting to find peace and pushing back her own anger. Sirius and the others were okay. They would be alright.

She mentally kept repeating that refrain so she wouldn't rush out to take vengeance and start summoning more monsters of the sea.

"Shouldn't the house wards prevent the Bringers from entering?" Luna asked as her eyes roamed over the backyard.

"She's right," Buffy realized. "How did they get in here?" Immediately the slayer was alert and her body was tense in a battle-ready pose.

Laying her palm against the soft grass, Willow magically scanned the area. "There are no Bringers here now… And I don't think there were any here at all."

Buffy looked at her in concern. "You think this was an inside job?" she asked her grimly.

Chewing her lip, Willow shook her head. "Not sure. Could be Amy screwed with the wards while she was here. Or that the First can mask its tracks from me."

"Well it's clear that they don't want any wizards going with you tonight," Dawn stated to Buffy. "I'm thinking this is a definite trap."

Buffy looked at her for a minute before nodding. "Yeah, it might be. Or they are trying to prevent us from attacking by taking out three of our strongest warriors. So we still need to go tonight – they won't expect it."

Willow bit her lip again as she held Sirius' hand. "Then I should go with you. You need magic."

"No, Will. I need you to stay here and protect everyone in case it is a trap. Besides," Buffy bit her lip as she looked like she was trying to find the best words to use. "With Sirius hurt I don't think you really need to be seeing the responsible people right now."

With a sigh, Willow nodded. Buffy was right. It was entirely possible that she might lose it again if she saw the bad guys.

Actually, more than possible. She wanted to boil their flesh and make them eat it.

_'Sirius and the others are okay. They will be alright,'_ she mentally reminded herself as she took several deep calming breaths.

"Then I'll go!" Dawn offered.

"What?" Buffy shouted. "No. Frickin'. Way. You're too young."

"But I'm a witch! And I kick ass at Defense Against the Dark Arts – Remus and Sirius had been teaching me a lot."

"And I'd like to go as well," Luna offered quietly.

"No and no," Buffy answered decisively as she looked from one witch to the other.

"Buffy!" Dawn said. "You need the help. What if there are more Unspeakables? You need a magic user."

"Buffy, please," Luna added. "I- I think I'm supposed to be there."

Looking at her in surprise, Buffy asked her cautiously, "You? Why do you think so?"

Luna glanced up at the burgeoning stars that were just beginning to shine in the twilight. "I had a dream last night that I was in this basement and I could smell rich, red wine. There was an old woman there who looked like the woman killed in the cemetery and she talked to me; although I can't remember what she said."

"Do you think it was a Slayer-type prophetic dream?" Buffy asked her seriously. "I know potential slayers can get them and you have the tendency to be more in tune with your dreams than most people I know."

Luna shrugged her shoulders. "It felt real but I'm not sure. I've been having a lot of vivid dreams with that woman lately – all in different places like a crypt or a set of ruins, but when you mentioned you were going to a vineyard tonight I just guessed that it was the same one."

Buffy gave her a considering look before nodding. "Okay, you can go." As Dawn began to cheer Buffy gave her a stern look. "But not you, Dawn."

"Why?" she asked in a hurt voice. "Because I'm not a potential?"

"No. Because you're my baby sister and I swore to protect you. This is going to be dangerous – and yes, I know you're a powerful witch," she said off of Dawn's annoyed look. "But if you're there I won't be able to focus – and that could cost lives. Besides, if the bad guys are coming into our backyard I need someone to help Willow and Anya. Okay?"

"Okay," Dawn sighed.

"Good. Now let's take these three inside," Buffy said as she pulled Luke into her arms.

* * *

Luna grasped her wand in one hand and her dagger in the other as she waited with Xander, Faith, Robin Wood, Vi, Chao-Ahn, Chloe, Amanda outside the vineyard. Buffy, Spike, Molly, Kennedy, Rona, Leah, Becky, and Janessa had gone in first and would signal them if they needed help.

There was something strange about this place and Luna couldn't quite put her finger on it. She felt a great amount of darkness here that was almost suffocating to be around. Yet somewhere under those layers of evil she felt a warm and good presence that reminded her of something. It was quite peculiar.

Gazing up at the stars with reverence, Luna said a simple silent prayer and asked the stars a question. They didn't, of course, always respond but Luna needed something; the attacks on the wizards and tonight's dark atmosphere had her worried.

"Is this the place from my dreams?" she quietly asked.

"You say something, Luna?" Faith asked her as she glanced over towards the youngest potential.

Luna shook her head no but kept her eyes focused on the stars. One by one, three dim stars began to shine brilliantly in the sky and Luna gasped.

"Yo home girl, what's up? You see someone?" Faith questioned as her eyes darted around the open area.

"The stars, they speak," Luna said in an amazed voice.

"Um, I don't hear anything," Xander said in confusion as he looked upwards.

Luna raised her hand to the stars; being careful to not use her index finger to point because that would mean she would be pointing three fingers back at herself. That was an old belief that her mother had taught her and she said it caused bad luck.

"Do you see those three stars? That is the constellation Triangulum," she informed them.

"Holy crap. It looks like a triangle…A triangle that's pointing at that building," Faith whistled lowly.

"Yes, due to its shape it is commonly associated with the Nile River Delta," Luna informed her. "Although I am unsure what the Nile has to do with Sunnydale."

"Maybe this guy does have something of Buffy's and it's pointing us to it," Xander said in an awe-struck voice as he gazed at the shining constellation.

"What's that above it, off to the right side?" asked Vi. "It's… Whoa. Are those stars blinking?"

Luna squinted and followed Vi's directions. Sure enough a series of stars were actually blinking. "Oh no," Luna said in a worried voice as she realized what constellation that was.

"Don't say 'oh no'," Robin said with a sigh.

"That is the constellation Andromeda."

"You mean, Sirius' cousin? Tonk's mom?" Xander asked with a frown.

"No," Luna shook her head. "Andromeda was the daughter of the king and queen of Ethiopia. When her mother brazenly boasted that her daughter was more beautiful than the sea nymphs, the sea nymphs asked the god Neptune to send a horrible monster named Cetus to bring ruin to the country. However, the king was told by the Oracles that if he sacrificed his daughter to the monster then Cetus would leave them in peace. So he tied Andromeda to the bow of a ship and left her there as a sacrifice."

"So what does that have to do with us?" Chloe asked in confusion.

"I think the stars are trying to warn us that a sacrifice will take place here tonight," Luna said as a chilling tingle ran down her spine.

Then, from the building, the screams began.

* * *

Luna silently cheered as Xander shot an arrow that went through the hand of a Bringer that was about to stab Rona. After hearing the screams they had run inside the building only to see pure chaos. Buffy was sprawled next to the wall, Spike was unmoving in a puddle of red wine, Kennedy lay in a broken heap next to wine barrels, and all the other potentials were fighting for their life.

Soon the room erupted into a chaotic battle as the screams of battle filled her ears. Luna saw a man dressed as a preacher – Caleb she assumed – fighting Faith and she went to fire a hex at him when a Bringer knocked her to the ground. Her hard fall took the wind right out of her and her wand clattered several feet away. Gleaming silver flashed down towards her stomach but Luna rolled away; trying fervently to remember everything she had been taught and had read about combat.

The knife missed her and smashed into the hard cement floor. Her dagger still in hand, Luna grimaced as she slashed it across the Bringer's Achilles' tendon as it crouched above her. It grunted as it fell backwards and plunged the knife towards her again. Luckily, Luna was so small that she easily outmaneuvered the creature and she rolled behind it. Then, ignoring her typical preference for peaceful tactics, she sliced her dagger across the soft flesh of the Bringer's throat.

Luna jumped to her feet, eager to help her friends, when a body flew into her and she slammed to the ground. As she moaned in pain she realized it was one of her fellow potentials on top of her.

"Are you okay?" she asked as she saw Leah's face. Then she noticed the odd angle that her neck was in and her heart caught in her throat. "Oh Merlin, no. Leah?" she asked as she gently set the girl to the side; trying hard to not move her head or neck.

"'Fraid poor 'lil Leah won't be having any more tea parties with you, girl," chuckled a menacing southern voice.

Eyes scanning the floor for her wand as she clenched her dagger, Luna jumped up into a battle stance. "You awful person!" Luna shouted as she eyed the potential whose glassy, fearful brown eyes stared back at her. Something powerful flared in Luna then as she looked at the poor girl in a motherly way. It didn't matter if Leah was older or that they had barely talked – they had been family because of their slayer connection.

And families didn't allow their members to be murdered by a woman-hating evil preacher.

Swiftly, Caleb moved to Luna's side and engulfed her neck with one hand. "So you're the Hogwarts whore my boys tried to find in jolly old England. The witch. But that's not all you are, is it little girl?" he sneered.

Knowing that there was a small window of opportunity to use a great amount of force before she became too weak from lack of air supply, Luna drove her dagger into Caleb's wrist.

"Ah!" he shouted as he dropped her and kicked her hard enough to send her flying. Luna crashed into a wine crate and fell to the floor. She gasped loudly and reached around her until she found her discarded wand. Her fingers plucked the wand up and she raised it at Caleb, who was now fighting Buffy, but her throat was too damaged to speak. She tried to sit up, but too many things were broken.

Across the room she saw Spike grab Buffy's arm. "We're all leaving," he said as he pulled her away.

Xander knelt next to her. "Are you okay?" Luna nodded since she couldn't speak. "Let's go. Come on," he said as he helped to pull her up. It felt like her arm was broken and several ribs but luckily her legs were not broken – although bruised. However, she suspected that her right ankle may be broken, but at least she still could limp away.

Xander helped her to the stairs until he was yanked away from her. Luna glanced back in fear as Caleb turned Xander around to face him

"You're the one who sees everything, aren't you?" Caleb asked Xander matter-of-factly. Luna gasped as Caleb hovered his hand above Xander's face. "Well, let's see what we can't do about that."

Luna screamed soundlessly as Caleb plunged his thumb into Xander's left eye and gouged it out. Blood trickled down his face as the poor man screamed in pain. Spike charged at Caleb and knocked the fake priest away from Xander while Buffy grabbed the bleeding man's arm.

"Xander!" she shouted as she hoisted him up. "Come on."

Spike rushed to Luna's side and slung her over his shoulders. "You alright, Crescent?"

"Yes," she croaked out.

"Thank god," she thought she heard Spike murmur as they limped upstairs and out of the house.

**

* * *

**

A/N:

So who possibly could have attacked the wizards? What do the stars mean? Why does Luna know random things? Has Kennedy truly given up on dating Willow? Will we see more HP people? And will everything go to hell now just like it did on the show?

Those answers and more will be coming up soon! ;D

Please review and let me know what you think, Dearest Readers!

PS: Happy 7/7 day! It seems like today's date would make today a lucky day... So I hope everyone gets some of that! (Now if only it were the year '77, that would be even luckier! ;)

Constellations: I verified my old memories of constellations here: *.org/wiki/Triangulum

*.org/wiki/Andromeda_


	70. Damn Dirigible Plum Earrings

A/N:

If you haven't noticed, there was a mix-up between chapters 68 & 69, so please make sure you read the real #68!

* * *

Willow sat at Xander's bedside three days later and grasped his hand in silence. After the battle the injured girls had been treated at the house using the magical healing supplies that Anya had purchased. Remus, Luke, and Sirius were more or less coherent by then so they were able to assist in administering treatments to everyone and heal most of them quickly.

Xander, unfortunately, was another story. Because Caleb had literally smashed his eyeball into an unrecognizable organ, the wizards were unable to repair the damage. Remus had been able to close the wound and relieve the pain but it looked like Xander would have to live with one eye the rest of his life.

The first time he had woken up after his treatment had been heart-breaking to witness. He was so full of anger at the situation that it took a long time for Willow to calm him down. After all, in their seven years of working with Buffy neither of them had even been permanently injured. Sure, they 'knew' it could happen just like how people who buy life insurance 'know' they need it – but never plan on using it.

But this time it looked like Xander's luck had run out.

"Hey," he said groggily as he woke up.

"Hey yourself," she smiled. "How are you feeling?"

Since his initial response every time Willow checked on him – part of the healing spells required heavy bed rest and lots of sleep – she thought that he was getting better. His outward anger lessened and while he was sometimes greatly bitter, at other times his humorous side would appear.

Today Willow hoped it was that side; she hated seeing her funny best friend bitter and angry at the world. Not to mention, on a very selfish side of her, she wanted him to feel emotionally better because she just didn't know what she could do to help him come to terms with it. After all, Willow had all her organs and appendages – what did she know?

It pained her to know that even after Xander was able to save her from self-destruction a year ago that she could not help him now.

"Just sleepy. That pain medication that they gave me really is like a party in my tie-dyed, trippin' out mind."

He tentatively touched the eye patch that Remus had outfitted him with. "I know it's been a couple days but sometimes I still forget it's not there. I open my eyes and just think one of them is closed." Xander made noise of derision. "Stupid, huh?"

Willow winced and squeezed his hand. "Not stupid," she stated vehemently. "It's a lot to handle."

"Yeah," Xander sighed "It's cool, I 'spose. Guess I won't have to worry about dressing up for Halloween anymore." He gestured towards his black eye patch. "I can just go as a pirate every year."

"Which, you know, has major benefits," she nodded fervently in an attempt to follow Xander's lead and keep things light. "Like not having to pay for a costume and oh! You get to use words like 'plunder' and 'booty'! The ladies will love you."

Xander chuckled and Willow grinned at him; the tension broken.

"True. I suppose I do look rather dashing, don't I?" he said as he wriggled his eyebrows.

"The dashing-est," she affirmed.

Xander grinned and then gave her a serious look. "How's Buffy? I haven't seen much of General Summers since the first time she visited me."

"Depressed. She feels really guilty about what happened – as she should, in a way. It was a bad plan," Willow frowned as she sat back in her chair. Buffy had isolated herself since the attack but even if she did come out Willow wasn't sure what to say to her.

"Yeah, it was," Xander agreed. "But did you see the stars that night?"

Willow shook her head. "No, but Luna told me. It seems the stars seemed to indicate that it was a trap, what with the Andromeda sacrifice and big honkin' arrow."

"Yeah, but…" Xander shrugged. "Before we saw them I heard Luna ask out loud if this was the place she saw in her dreams and only then did we see the triangle. After that the second constellation blinked."

"You think there really is something there?" Willow asked skeptically.

Xander sighed. "Hell if I know. I feel like we can't trust anything at this point.

"How's everyone else?" he asked; changing subjects.

"All healed, although the people with the worst wounds are still sleeping it off like you. And, well, the girls who didn't make it – Molly, Leah, and Janessa – were buried yesterday alongside Annabelle in the backyard."

Xander grimaced. "I hope Buffy's mom doesn't have any more African masks lying around because we're definitely acquiring a bad 'pet cemetery' out there," he joked darkly.

"Yeah," Willow said in a small voice.

"I'm glad you're okay," she added softly after a moment.

Xander gave her a gentle smile. "Thanks Will. I am too, even if I will have to endure bad jokes the rest of my life – like people asking me if I run with scissors."

They laughed lightly; taking pleasure in each other's company during this quiet moment – even if they knew, at some level, that it was all just show. But maybe someday soon, Willow hoped, her Xander friend could be happy for real.

* * *

"Remus, can you help me with a spell?" Anya asked after he opened his bedroom door a week after the attack.

"Of course Anya," he told her as he gestured for her to come in. "What do you need?"

His _not_-girlfriend took a seat on his bed. The had discussed her inability to tell him about Spike earlier this week and while it turned into an argument it resulted with them making up. However, Remus couldn't help but feel a bit of bitterness that Anya didn't consider him worthy of being in a 'relationship' with her. Sure, he understood that she was afraid of getting hurt but it bothered him that she didn't trust him. Still, he decided that she had been partly right and that they may as well go with whatever they had until the world ended or they saved it.

_'Besides, the sex really is remarkable,'_ he thought with a grin. Of course he wanted more but Remus supposed it was tradition that he never got what he wanted – and why stop tradition now?

Anya pulled a box out of a shopping bag that bore the name _'Helga's Healing Supplies'._ "This just arrived from that apothecary in Columbia Village. Dawn and I had been playing with it – remember? – and I decided to buy it. Of course, after setting it there needs to be a healing spell done with it and you know that I am pretty horrid when it comes to those. So will you do it?"

Remus took the box from her hands and read the cover. Instantly his stomach plummeted. This was a magical eye used in cases where a wizard lost his eye. While on one hand he applauded Anya's effort to help her ex-fiancé deal with his new fate – Xander was a friend of his after all – it disturbed him that this was more evidence that Anya was not over Xander.

"I would be happy to do this for Xander," Remus told her; perhaps he spoke a bit stiffly but it was hard to cover his shock.

"Great! You really are a wonderful man, Remus John Lupin!" Anya thanked him as she gave him a smoldering kiss on the lips.

Remus sighed internally. Of course there was no way he could say no to helping his friend and making Anya happy at the same time. But still… He just wished that he was sure that Anya cared for him as much as he did – and that she cared for him more than any torch she held for Xander.

* * *

"Ahn?" Xander called as he opened the library door. Call it a Scooby thing but for some reason they all preferred to have their private meetings in the library. Already the potentials knew it was mostly off-limits since it was the only place the Scoobs could go for some peace and quiet.

"Xander! Great! You're here. Sit down," Anya eagerly ordered him as she pointed to the empty chair next to Remus.

"Ah, okay," he said hesitantly. "What's going on?"

"Oh Xander, don't look so worried. You'd think I was asking you to join Remus and I in a threesome," Anya rolled her eyes.

"Wha—" Xander choked out.

Remus' eyes bulged out as he glanced at Xander in alarm. "Anya!"

She snickered to herself. "Really, you men are too easy. I swear, that is one thing I may never understand about sex. Why do men love lesbians and threesomes but not threesomes with other men? Completely unfair, if you ask me. I mean, what if I wanted to get pleasured simultaneously by two handsome men?"

Seeing their worried looks she waved her hand dismissively. "Not that _I_ want that, of course not, I'm just saying some people do. I mean, sure, maybe I've thought about it once or twice and sometimes have very entertaining dreams featuring certain unnamed persons from this house all together on one big orgy-sized bed wearing nothing and fighting over who gets to give me my first, but certainly not last, orgasm of the night…"

Anya shook herself and lost the dreamy quality in her eyes. "Now, where were we? Oh yes, Xander I got you an eye."

"What?" Xander asked in a soft surprised voice; thinking that Anya was joking with him and half-mad if she was.

Anya gave him a victorious smile and set a box in front of him. As he examined the package he felt a smidge of hope flare within him. "Ahn… is this a magical eye?"

"Give the boy a prize!" she grinned. "Yes, Dawn and I found it at the wizarding village months ago and when you got hurt I realized that you could still have an eye! Anyways, it's magical and gets hardwired to your brain, just like a real eye, once Remus does the healing spell along with it. It will act like a normal eye but it can also see in x-ray vision and see out the back of your head and all sorts of silly comic-book type things that you would like!"

"This cost way too much – I can never pay you back," he informed her. Not to mention, he was Xander Harris, Carpenter – not Xander Harris, Magical Eye Guy.

Anya rolled her eyes. "Hello? I'm like, crazy rich now. Like it matters."

"Yeah," Xander said slowly like he was speaking to a child. "But you love money – in a hoarding it Smaug-style way and not in a giving way," he smiled.

"Besides," he added. "Me and magic don't mix well together."

"Well you and magic can just learn how to get along!" Anya said in a frustated voice.

"Listen Xander," Anya said in a serious voice after a slight pause. "When I first became human you were the only person to show me kindness. You introduced me into this silly mortal world and taught me so much – like about X-Mean and how to take plastic zip-lock bags with me when I go to a Chinese buffet. Even though we didn't work out I've finally come to a point where I don't regret us. So let me do this nice thing for you, okay? Because if you say no then I'll just tie you up and do it anyway."

Xander swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded; eerily reminded of a similar event around prom time so many years ago. "Thank you," he said sincerely. It made him happier than he realized to know that Anya still thought highly of him – a year ago he never would have thought they'd be at this point in their lives.

And he was just remembering her mention an 'x-ray vision' feature… Maybe after his new eye got inserted he would have to take a trip to the gym and walk by the women's locker rooms!

* * *

Dressed in a black tank top and black stretch pants accompanied by thigh–high boots, Buffy patrolled a cemetery silently. She needed to find some sort of blood-sucking vampire to take her frustrations out on. It had been a week since the failed attack on the vineyard and the guilt was eating at her soul. Every time she stepped in the backyard she saw the graves of the four girls who she had been charged with protecting. Whenever she saw Xander with his eye patch it felt like a kick to the gut. Then there were all the depressed potential slayers who looked like they were just waiting to get slaughtered. Not to mention, every time one of her friends looked at her she felt them judging her.

It was enough to drive one crazy.

And maybe she was crazy. After all, what had she been thinking? It was just that she was tired of inaction and waiting around for the next Bringer knife to fall! But now three were dead and Xander's eye was gone.

Buffy let loose a frustrated yell; the cemetery silent no more.

"Whoa. Thought you slayers were supposed to be stealthy," commented to voice that she just knew had a smirk behind it.

Buffy whirled and hauled Luke against the wall of a nearby crypt. "Sneaking up on slayers is _not_ a good idea, wizard boy," she hissed with narrowed eyes.

"It's wizard _man_," he replied back matter-of-factly. "And by the way, love the outfit. Are you moonlighting as a mime as well? Because I would love to see you communicate with your hands," he smirked.

Grunting in annoyance, Buffy let go of him and began walking. "What do you want anyways?"

"Came with information. I was at your house but they said you were out patrolling," he answered her as he began walking in step with her.

"What information?" she asked with slight interest.

"On Caleb. I had my research department scour through both muggle and magical news. Turns out your evil priest matches the description of a priest where mysterious murders would occur at every church he worked at. Twenty girls in all were murdered across the states."

"What?" Buffy asked in outrage. "How did no one get him?"

Luke shrugged. "I assume there wasn't enough evidence or the muggle police were just idiots."

"Okay, so he's a murderer. But we kinda knew that. What I'm wondering is why our man in black is creepy strong."

"Well the church murders ended a little over a year ago. Nothing is known about Caleb since then so I bet that's when he converted to crazy First worship."

Buffy stopped and faced him. "Okay, but what I need to know is how to stop him from being so freaking strong. He and the Bringers took out three of my girls and hurt way too many more," she said bitterly.

Luke's eyes captured her own and Buffy was surprised to see a deep sense of understanding there. "It wasn't your fault you know. If anything, I think you had the right idea," Luke told her softly.

She didn't say anything and just looked away as she bit her lip.

"You didn't know that Caleb would be that powerful." Two strong hands gripped her upper arms and his thumb moving in soft, reassuring circles. Buffy tensed at his touch – he had never touched her in such a familiar way before – and gazed up into his dark blue eyes that looked black in the shadows.

"I'm the leader. That means everything that happened is my fault."

Luke shook his head. "You're the leader which means when things go good people love you and when things go wrong people are mad at you. It's a lot of pressure but you have to remember that in a war people die."

"Easy for you to say," Buffy snorted as she tried to pull away.

Giving her an intense look, Luke pulled her closer. "_No._ It is not easy for me to say, Buffy. I work for the Department of Secret Services where we deal with everything that the average wizard or witch knows nothing about – and we work so they won't have to worry about it. You think I haven't seen some of my team members die in battle or go mad from the Cruciatus? I know about loss."

Biting back a snarky reply, Buffy took a moment to contemplate his words. "How do you deal with it?"

"I honor them by making smarter decisions in the future and to keep on living. Sometimes that's all you can do."

Buffy then realized just how close they were – her breasts were pressed up against his hard chest and his face was less than a foot from hers. She wet her lips in nervousness. "Good to know," she managed to say.

"Well, there is another way to deal as well," he stated seriously.

"What's that?" she asked with furrowed brows.

"Kissing. Kissing tends to cure lots of things," he grinned cheekily.

She felt her heartbeat race even as she chastised her body for responding so readily. Luke Matthews was insufferably annoying and arrogant and sure, maybe he was helpful sometimes but so is a dog that brings in the paper from time to time.

"Yeah, well not me," she replied breezily. "After all, with my track record I tend to kiss only evil or formerly evil guys, so kissing is of the bad."

"Do you think I'm evil?" he asked with an amused smile.

"Well, you do dress nicely; which bad guys tend to do. And you have magic powers so there's possibility there. Plus you have hair that just sits there perfectly which is so not normal, so obviously it must be evil," she rambled.

"Evil hair?" he laughed loudly.

Buffy closed her eyes as her feeling of stupidity soared to a record new height. "Well, it _is_ the Hellmouth," she replied dumbly.

Eyes still closed, Buffy felt a soft pressure on her lips. Opening her eyes in alarm she realized that Luke was kissing her! How dare he kiss her!

Mmm. How dare he kiss her like… this… Buffy reflexively ran her hand up to his hair and clenched it – just like she had been dreaming of for a while. The kiss was soft and sweet and not like anything she would have expected him of doing. After what felt like a long moment they finally pulled away.

"So," he grinned down at her with sparkling eyes.

"So." Her eyes blinked rapidly as she tried to figure out what to say. "Um, so I better go. Go home and tell the others, um, about the information you brought me," she said hurriedly; in a fit of sudden nerves. "I'll, uh, see you around?"

His eyebrows rose slightly and he nodded; still with a smile on his face. "Sounds good."

"Great," Buffy muttered as she walked in the opposite direction.

That kiss had been nice. But now was not the time to get distracted.

_'Besides,' _a little voice whispered at the back of her mind, _'there is still Spike. Spike who is probably your closest friend right now and in love with you and that you might, maybe, love too.'_

Buffy frowned. She really hated her conscience sometimes.

* * *

Willow fell down onto the lawn in a tired heap once she and Kennedy had re-administered the wards for the house. Afraid that maybe the Bringers had been the ones to break in and attack the wizards they had been researching stronger spells to ensure that the bad guys stayed out.

Kennedy fell next to her with a relieved sigh and glanced over. "Sure am glad that's done," she grinned.

"Me too." Willow closed her eyes and let herself soak up the bright spring sun. "That was tiring."

"I know, right? We should just take a nap."

"Zen fire ze missiles!" Willow joked in a bad French accent.

"Huh?" Kennedy said as she gave Willow a 'you must be crazy' look.

"Old internet cartoon. Pretty funny. Well, I mean after dealing with numerous apocalypses that one just really makes me laugh," Willow giggled.

"You lead an interesting life, Willow Rosenberg," Kennedy smirked.

"Too interesting, really. I wish I could just vacation again, sometimes. You know, take some time and travel around the world," she sighed as she watched the clouds form various shapes and move slowly through the heavens.

"Like where?" Kennedy inquired.

"Um. Hmm. Well definitely Italy – I've always wanted to ride in a gondola and eat gelato," Willow grinned.

"Well let's do it!" Kennedy stated as she leaned on her side and faced Willow. "Let's take a trip there!"

"Now?" she asked in a surprised voice.

"Why not? We haven't been doing anything for the past week except wait for Buffy to send us on some kamikaze mission. May as well have some fun – plus with portkeys traveling is pretty quick, even intercontinental travel."

"Ken, I would _love_ too but you know we have to ride this out first," Willow said regretfully.

"Yeah," Kennedy sighed. "I know. But hey, doesn't hurt to dream, now does it?" she smiled.

"Yeah," Willow nodded.

"Hey Will?" the potential slayer asked after a long moment of watching the clouds.

"Yeah?"

"I just… I just never got to tell you that I'm sorry for pushing you when Sirius was kidnapped. I wish I could have controlled myself better and thought more clearly," Kennedy said contritely.

Willow swallowed heavily. "It's okay. You couldn't help how Amy affected you. Just like I couldn't," she said in a quiet voice.

"Yeah," Kennedy nodded. "Still, I just don't know what I would have done if I lost you. I mean, I know we can't be more than friends and I get that, but you are my only friend here – and probably my only real friend ever."

"Oh, Ken," Willow breathed. The other girl's face was a mask of tightly controlled emotion. "You're my friend, too. I'm glad that you came to Sunnydale."

"Really?" she asked with a small smile. "Even when you already have a million other friends here?"

Willow snorted. "Don't try making me sound like Ms. Popular. Yes, I have friends here but no one understands my love for magic. Even with Sirius and Remus it's so much a part of their lives that they just take it for granted. And yeah, Dawn has really embraced it but she's more of a younger sister and it's hard to really be equal with her, ya know?"

"Yeah, I know. Got a half-sister, remember?" Kennedy grinned.

"Hey, by the way, there's something I want to give you," she continued as she sat up.

"What?"

A ring was set in Willow's outstretched hand. "This. It's an old mood ring that my mom used to have before she gave it to me. It's one of my favorite things and well, I want you to have it."

"Ken, I can't accept this!" Willow sighed as she looked over the silver band with a large gem set in it.

"Please. It's a gift. I got scared about almost losing you as a friend and I really just want to give you something of mine as a friendship gift. So keep it, okay?"

Willow stared into her brown eyes for a long time. She truly enjoyed her friendship with Kennedy; it made her feel good that she could be there for the girl and that she was the only one that Kennedy opened up to. Plus, ever since they got back Kennedy and Sirius got along now so Willow took that as a good sign.

"Thank you."

"Think nothing of it," Kennedy said with a wide smile. "Okay, so I lost the instructions a long time ago but, red means love or aroused," here Kennedy winked at her, "green means happy, gray means sad or depressed, black means anger, amber means nervous, and blue means content."

"Cool," Willow grinned as she put it on and marveled at the swirling colors. "Ooh look! It's green!"

Kennedy laughed. "Then I guess you're happy – good," she smiled.

* * *

Willow put away the spell back into the bookcase and decided to go take a nap. For over a week she had been reading about the mythology surrounding the constellations, any group named the Guardians, any reference to a magical scythe, or anything else on the First, and she hadn't found much. Actually, she had not found anything.

As she walked up the stairs two of the potentials – Juliet and Erica – ran past her as they giggled. Frowning, Willow wondered what they thought was so funny – all the potentials had been terribly depressed since the incident in the wine cellar. Curious, Willow decided to follow them to the third floor and found all the potentials running around as they got dressed and did their hair and make-up.

Seeing Faith in Luna and Juliet's room, Willow leaned against the doorway. "We having a party that I didn't get an invite to?" she asked with a raised brow.

"Oh, hey Red! What up? We're just getting ready for some Bronzin' fun times," Faith replied with a grin as she applied dark eye make-up on Luna's face while Juliet straightened her hair with an iron.

"The Bronze? Are you crazy? We have crazy preacher man after us!" Willow exclaimed in shock; not noticing how everyone in the hall had stopped what they were doing to listen in to her conversation.

Faith set the eye shadow down and gave Willow a serious look. "Look yo, these girls can't just sit inside all day waiting to get hacked up by the First. They need to have fun, you know?"

Willow gnawed her lip nervously. She had noticed the low moral of the potentials all week but really didn't know how to go about cheering up forty teenage girls. "Well, does Buffy know?"

Faith shrugged. "C'mon, you know B. She'll go all Stepford Wife on us and put the girls into lock down. She'd never let them had fun."

"Well… Okay. Just, take someone else other than you to help look out. Maybe Remus and Anya?"

"Sure," Faith grinned at how Willow easily caved. "No problem-o."

Excited cheers from eager teenage girls filled the hallway.

Willow smiled back. Having Faith around this past week had been different… but she was getting used to her. It seemed that she really had changed so Willow was trying to be more open.

"So you're going too, Luna?" Willow inquired; still leaning against their door. "I thought you didn't have as much fun last time."

"Oh, it's not my cup of tea," she said in her soft voice, "but after last week I would like to go out with everyone else. As Faith has taught me this week, 'you only live once.'"

Willow's eyes widened as she glanced back and forth from Faith to Luna. "I hope that's _all_ that she's taught you."

Luna giggled while Faith snickered indecently. "No worries Red, I'm keeping it all PG-13 with Crescent here."

"Crescent? Isn't that what Spike calls her?" Willow asked in a confused voice.

"Yup. Have'ta say, the vamp can come up with some good ones. After seeing Luna fight last week I'm inclined to agree with Spike on her level of BAMF-ness."

"What's a BAMF?" Juliet asked curiously.

Faith started laughing. "A Bad Ass Mother Fucker."

"Aw! I want to be a BAMF!" the Juliet pleaded as she paused with straightening her hair.

"Hey girl, just kick ass once B. let's you fight," Faith grinned at the other blond-haired sixteen-year old.

"Okay, Cres, make-up's all done. What do you think?" Faith held a small mirror in front of Luna's face and the girl peered closely. Her eyes were outlined in emerald green eyeliner with light green sparkled eye shadow blended into her brow line. Dark red lips glistened with recently applied lip gloss and Luna smiled appreciatively.

Personally, Willow thought it was a bit too much for someone her age – but she supposed that's what happened when Faith was your make-up artist!

"Oh, thank you Faith. The green matches my dress perfectly," the thirteen-year old breathed in amazement.

"Think nothin' of it. Now, all we gotta do is put on some jewelry and you're set. Here, try these large hoops – they're my Baby Phat ones and are guar-an-_teed_ to bring in the brothas," Faith smirked as she held up to shining hoops.

"But why would she want to pick up any brothers?" Willow inquired with a frown. "Like, boys she's related to?"

Faith busted out laughing. "Damn, Sunny D is a white flight town, ain't it? Naw, Red, brothas are the lovely dark-complected men. Like Robin," she wriggled her eyebrows comically.

"You and Robin?" Willow gasped like a gossiping school girl.

"Well, not yet," she answered with a sly grin. "But he's mighty fine looking, plus he is like the only available dude in this house 'sides Giles. And I'm so not into the Viagra-poppers," Faith snorted.

"What's Viagra?" Luna asked absent-mindedly as she toyed casually with her radish earrings.

"Er, never mind," Faith told her with a wicked smile under the watchful gaze of Willow. "Now, let's pop in these puppies," she said as she held up the hoops to Luna's ears.

Luna's mouth dropped in alarm and she grabbed her earrings. "Oh, no! That is alright – I've already got my dirigible plum earrings" she stated with a stretched and nervous smile.

Faith glanced back at Willow. "Ah, listen homie I know you feel those earrings – I've never seen you _not_ wear them – but they don't really match your outfit. Trust me, these hoops will look hot."

Luna shook her head fervently. "No! I can't take them off!" she shouted as she leaped onto her bed and away from Faith.

"Um." Willow frowned at the outburst from the typically serene girl. "Why not?"

Luna's face scrunched in confusion as her legs swung back and forth over the bed. "Uh, I'm not sure."

"Well have you tried?" Juliet asked as she stared at her roommate in concern.

She fingered one earring but immediately drew it back. "I-I can't," she said shakily as her chest rose with quick breaths.

"Hey," Faith said gently as she held out a hand. "It's alright Luna, you don't have to take them off."

"Really?" the girl sighed in relief.

"Really," Faith smiled; but behind her back she motioned for Willow to approach.

Nodding her head, Luna sat back down on the edge of her bed. Without warning Faith grabbed the girl and held her against the mattress. Over her screams of terror Faith shouted, "Take them damn dirigible plums out, Red!"

Obliging, Willow quickly pulled the earrings out of Luna's ear and set them on the nightstand. Just as quickly Luna's screams halted and the girl looked at Faith with wide eyes.

"Dear Merlin," she panted as her eyes focused on something far away. Then she began crying and Faith barked at the potentials now crowding the doorway to go to their rooms.

Faith sat on the bed next to Luna and drew the girl to sit up. Immediately Luna wrapped her arms around Faith's neck and continued crying. Faith looked shocked by the familiarity of Luna's gesture but after a moment's pause she tentatively hugged the girl back.

"Luna? What is it?" Willow asked gently as she sat next to them both.

"I remember it now. Oh, it was awful. That old woman died! A blast of green light hit her! The Killing Curse killed her!" she spoke frantically with quick breaths.

"What old woman?" Willow inquired with a glance at Faith's concerned face.

"The one in the cemetery; I remember it all now! She came and talked to me and then she was dead." Luna's cries of sadness dissipated and she drew herself away from the slayer; although she kept holding Faith's hand.

"She told me she was a Guardian and that there were only two more of her kind." Luna continued with a frown.

"A Guardian?" Willow exclaimed. "Like the people who crafted that super slayer weapon?" Maybe they would finally find an advantage in this war!

Luna shrugged. "Maybe… I suppose. She also said…No, it sounds crazy," she chided herself out loud.

"What did she say?" Faith asked.

"That she had returned and that I needed to learn about my heritage… and that I needed to be the one lead Buffy to a weapon that 'will change everything if all that is foretold comes to pass'," Luna gulped audibly.

"The Scythe," Faith said in an awe-struck voice as she remembered the book that Luke had found. "You know where it is?"

Luna screwed her face up in concentration. "I-I think so."

Faith and Willow shared triumphant smiles.

* * *

Caleb sneered at the man whom his master had commanded him to work with. Apparently this man could help him get an inside look at the minds of the Slayer and her companions but as far as Caleb was concerned he didn't need a spy to understand simple women folk. They were soulless whores that were only good for producing sons; sons which his master would soon turn to wickedness.

Amen.

"They are still suffering from low morale and I think now is the time to goad the Slayer into attacking again. I'll ensure that the wizards are taken out of combat once more so you can focus on killing the potentials – but you just get the Slayer to leap before she looks again," his dark voice informed Caleb in the dim lighting of the wine cellar.

"How about you actually kill them stick waving fellas this time? Sure would save me a heap 'o' trouble," Caleb commented dryly in his southern accent. Personally, he just didn't see the need for this man but he had learned long ago not to question his master.

"To do so would turn the witch too quickly. More time needs to be given to her before we kill her lover and his friend. Currently our master deems her as too much of an unstable threat. Furthermore, you know he wants her to ally with us." The man spoke to him like he was simple. And Caleb may talk like it, but he sure as hell wasn't simple folk.

Not to mention, he despised the idea of any _woman_ potentially working with him – no matter how dark this witch turned out to be.

"Fine," Caleb hissed. "But your Slayer and her friends better not get so close next time. That witch almost took off my hand!"

A hand was waved dismissively at him. "Yes and if I remember that night I was injured as well so fair's fair, I suppose. Now, will you go see Buffy at the school today? The day draws to a close."

"Oh course," Caleb snapped as he raised a righteous fist. "I shall show that little whore true power – and she will shake in fear as my justice rolls down like a mighty river!"

"Yes, yes," the man sighed as he rolled his eyes. "Do be sure to do that."

**

* * *

**

A/N:

Things are heating up, Dearest Readers! Do be sure to let me know what you are thinking, regarding some progressions and revelations in this latest chapter! *claps hands at my sneakiness*

Also… I've haven't gotten as much feedback in these last few chapters (maybe b/c of the holiday weekend) but I worked a long time on this chapter and would LOVE to know what you think!

******References******

*Props to AllenPitt for the magical eye idea – I know I'm looking forward to an upgraded version of the 'One Who Sees' ;) Should make for some good humor!

*Smaug—The dragon in JRR Tolkien's 'The Hobbit' that hoarded treasure underneath the Lonely Mountain.

*"Zen fire ze missiles!"- The End of the World cartoon that used to be (still is?) on e-baum's world; a website. SO FUNNY!

*Chapter 48: 'Team Slayer v. Team Wizard v. Team ?' – where the old woman visited Luna and was murdered.

* and she will shake in fear as my justice rolls down like a might river!"—semi-quote from the Bible in the Book of Amos: "But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream." () It's a pretty bad ass one and one I thought Caleb could appreciate in every twisted situation of his.


	71. The Watcher, The Wizard, & The Wanker

The Watcher, The Wizard, & The Wanker

A/N:

For the purposes of this story, the HP timeline will be moving a bit quicker than normal and the Third Task will occur in late April/early May, in order to coincide with my BTVS storyline.

* * *

Xander chuckled to himself as he maneuvered his way past several potentials through the hallway and into the kitchen. He had made Remus and Anya promise not to say anything about his recent magical acquisition until he had a bit of fun first. Remus, who understood the value of good pranks, and Anya had agreed. They had gone through the instruction manual for his magical eye and run through the various programs until he had gained enough familiarity with them. With x-ray vision and the ability to see out of the back of his head, Xander just _knew_ that he had to have some fun with this.

Still with his eye patch on – in order to hide his brown and quite realistic looking magical eye – Xander grinned at the gaggle of girls rustling through the cupboards. Even though the wizards and witches had increased the size of the kitchen it still was not enough for the over fifty people living here now. At least fifteen girls were munching on cookies, ice cream, and chips while giggling, gossiping, and trying to pretend they weren't taking a gander at his pirate patch.

Dawn was the only one being quiet and that was because she was sitting at the kitchen table writing furiously on a piece of paper. Her right hand wrote while her left hand covered up the paper and a curtain of hair protected it from view.

'But not Super!Xander's view!' he thought with a giddy grin. Activating his x-ray vision he narrowed in on the paper and magically enhanced her small scribblings to an appropriate size for reading. Of course, Xander was not surprised to see who his Dawnster was writing too.

*~*~*~*~*  
_Dear Harry,_

Sorry to hear about that Rita Skeeter cow making your life a living hell. Can't you hex her or something? Haha, if I was there I totally would make her balloon up like your one aunt did before your third year!

I cannot believe that your final Task is coming up so soon – I really hope you win! Cuz, ya know, then you get a shiny trophy! And really, is there anything better than shininess?

Anyways, things here are really crazy. I already told you about the fight at the vineyard and how that turned out. I just wish Buffy would let me fight, you know? I'm so sick of everyone treating me like I'm fragile. I mean, jeez! I'm a witch now! And I've faced big bads before you'd think they'd see me as an asset! But nope, I'm still Dawn, Buffy's little sister that must be protected with her life. Gah. I can't wait to grow up.

…Sorry for venting :/ It's just I don't have anyone besides you to talk about these things with. Janice, Kit, and Carlos can't really know all these details – even if they do have a slight idea – and besides, they are all leaving town this weekend. With the Hellmouth acting up I guess people can feel it because the place is turning into a ghost town. And yeah, Luna's not bad to talk to here but she's so calm about everything and I don't think she'd get my anger at being singled out like you do.

Anyways, I hope after this crazy First stuff dies down you can come visit again. And yeah, maybe cuz I miss you but also cuz I've been practicing on my broom that I got for Christmas and I totally know I can take you on in Quidditch!  
_  
See ya!  
Dawn_

After reading her letter Xander felt bad at how Dawn felt – it did sort of remind him of how he felt in high school sometimes when Buffy worried about his safety. Still, he wished she would just enjoy being a teenager sometimes and not so worried about fighting. If anything every happened to Dawn, he would feel awful.

But, pushing away those more serious thoughts, he smiled in Dawn's direction. "So, writing to Harry again, I see? I see that you're sinking your cougar claws into him," he teased.

Dawn's head jerked up and her face flushed red as she made sure her letter was covered with her arms. "What? No. I mean, yes, I'm writing to him again but there is no claw sinkage of any sort."

"Right," giggled one of the potentials, Aryll – Xander had to wonder if her parents played a lot of video games. "Then why is you're face as red as a stop sign?"

"Is not," Dawn grumbled as she touched her cheek.

"C'mon, Dawn, it's cool if you like him. Harry might be a two years younger but he's a cutie!" Vi grinned cheekily.

"It's not like that," Dawn said with rolled eyes. "We're just friends. You know, we're just the Prez and VP of the I Survived the Killing Curse, Nynah Nynah Nynah Club!"

Everyone laughed at that statement; clearly thinking that this was a case of the Lady doth protestest too much.

"So do you really think you could beat Harry, the youngest seeker in a century, at Quidditch?" Xander asked with a knowing smile.

"Huh?" Dawn's expression crumbled into confusion. "What? How do you… Did you read me letter?" she asked in a threatening voice while glaring at him through narrowed eyes.

"Dawn, I lost an eye. I can barely see your face, let alone a piece of paper that you are very protectively covering," he said in sad voice; milking his injury for all that it was worth.

Dawn's face erupted into something from a geometry book – her eyes widened into alarmed circles and her lips formed a round 'O'. "Oh my gosh, Xander, I'm _so_ sorry! I didn't mean to, you know, bring that up!"

Xander sighed and nodded. "I know Dawnie, I know. You didn't mean it. It can be easy to forget. It is a shame though, that my seeing is limited. I mean, it can be hard to focus on a pizza box to read the directions," he grumbled.

Dawn, feeling too guilty to realize that the lack of an eye doesn't prevent one from reading to a great degree, nodded fervently. "Yeah, I bet. Um, are you hungry? Do you want me to make you a pizza from the freezer?"

With a sad sigh, he replied with mental glee. "That would be great, Dawnie."

While Dawn prepared the pizza Sirius, Spike, and Giles walked in together as they talked amongst themselves about weaponry and battle tactics.

Realizing an excellent opportunity to further take advantage of his new eye, he smiled brightly at the men. "Hey look! It's the British Boys! What are you up to?"

Giles pulled off his glasses and sighed at the noisy teenagers, who were luckily migrating to another part of the house. "Xander, please do cease calling us by that inane boy band sounding name."

"Yeah," Spike scoffed. "If I were going to be in a band, it wouldn't involve any froofy dancing. Pure punk, I tell ya."

"Right. And what would your punk band be called? The Watcher, The Wizard, and The Wanker?" Xander cracked at Spike.

Spike sneered at him. "Watch it, Boy Wonder, or I'll be taking out your second eye."

"So scared," Xander deadpanned. "I bet you couldn't even beat me in a game of poker – I've heard Clem say you're not as hot as you think you are."

"Oi, he said that?" Spike asked with a quirked lip. "You really want to take me on? I'll show you. I've got years of experience on you, boy."

"Well, then step on down into Xander's Casino!" he grinned confidently. "What about you, Sirius? Giles? You game?"

Sirius glanced towards the door. "Willow and I are supposed to go out for a picnic later on, but yeah, why not? It's been a long time since I've played." Then he frowned. "Although I bet you all play the Muggle way, don't you?"

"I certainly should hope so. Everything in this house seems to be either bloody computerized or magical. I would quite like some old-fashioned gambling," Giles stated as he sat down.

"Excellent," Xander as everyone settled in and he found a stack of cards. His eye was going to come in _very_ handy.

And it did, because five games came and went as Xander won each and every hand. Sure, maybe it was considered cheating that he knew which cards they had and which ones were in the deck, but hey! What else were magical eyes good for?

"Are you serious?" Spike growled as Xander won hand number six. "What in the bloody hell is this!"

Xander shrugged casually and looked at Spike innocently. "Guess you're not as good as you thought, Spikey."

"This is rubbish," Sirius grumbled as he lay his cards down.

"Hey guys!" Willow called cheerfully as she and Faith walked into the room. "Whatcha doin?"

"Oh, just playing a good game of poker!" Xander answered her in a matching cheerful tone. "And you lovely ladies?"

The girls shared a wide grin. "We've got news. Where's B?" Faith asked.

"Still at school, I reckon'," Spike answered.

"Well, darn it," Willow grimaced. "Okay, well when she gets back we need a hardcore Scooby meeting. Sirius, can you get a hold of Luke and tell him to come here? And Faith, you call Robin. We'll meet in the library once Buffy gets back."

"Ugh," Spike groaned. "Do we really need that damn annoying perfect little wizard cop?"

"Yeah," Willow nodded. "We'll need his help. And," she frowned, "why not?"

Spike laid his cards out on the table and stood up. "I could smell that wanker on her the other night," he grimaced.

"Jealous?" Xander smirked.

"No!" Spike said vehemently. "Just think that, in a time of war, that we all need to focus and 'specially can't have the slayer all distracted by big-haired and handsome," he explained.

"Right," Xander rolled his eyes. The Spike/Buffy thing was too icky for words for him. He wanted his best friend to be happy and he would much rather have her date a wizard than a vampire.

"What's going on, Willow?" Sirius asked.

She bit her lip to hide a grin and glanced at Faith. "Just, good news. Promise. I just want to wait until Buffy gets here before I spill the beans. In fact, I've got to check on something but let me know when Buffy gets here, 'kay?"

"Sure," Sirius said in a puzzled voice as Faith and Willow grinned at each other again and left the room together.

"That was odd," Xander commented.

"Yeah, Red and the Rogue Slayer aren't exactly study buddies," Spike smirked with a raised brow.

"Well, hopefully it will be something helpful," Giles sighed. "Lord knows we could use some good news."

* * *

Willow smiled to herself as she walked with Luna towards the library. Apparently Buffy had just arrived home and they were ready to meet. Frankly, she felt like a weight was lifted off of her shoulders with Luna's announcement. After Xander lost his eye and some of the girls died, Willow was really starting to think that they were in over their heads. But maybe, just maybe, they weren't anymore.

"Hey Luna, Red," Faith greeted them as they passed her relaxing on the living room sofa.

"Howdy," Willow smiled.

"Hi Faith," Luna gave her a small, tired smile. The poor girl had been through a terrible ordeal and Willow felt awful that someone so young had to deal with so much. Then again, she supposed that was the life of being a potential slayer.

As Faith walked in step with them, Willow wondered what it had been like for Faith. Surprisingly, their moment with Luna earlier had set a bond between them. Working together to rip the cursed earrings of the teen and then sharing in the excitement that they have a secret weapon waiting for them, well, it changed something in the way Willow viewed Faith. Not to mention, when Willow saw Faith hugging Luna back she realized that the other slayer wasn't as bad as she once was.

Walking into the library, Willow saw that the whole gang was there – Buffy, Xander, Giles, Spike, Sirius, Remus, Anya, Luke, and Robin. Plus, several of the girls were there as well – Dawn, Kennedy, Rona, and Vi. Giving Luna a reassuring shoulder rub, she hoped the girl didn't mind speaking in front of the fifteen of them.

"Good, you guys are here," Buffy stated from her seat at the head of the rectangular study table. "I've got news."

"So do we," Faith drawled. "Of the good sort. Yours?"

"Of the good, in a way," Buffy frowned.

"Well, give it up, B."

"Caleb visited me at school today."

A chorus of gasps sounded through the room at her declaration and soon everyone began asking her if she was alright.

Buffy waved her hand and smiled thinly. "I'm fine, really. Nothing a soapy bubble bath won't cure."

A beat passed and she turned serious again. "Listen, when Caleb visited me he kept talking about the school and the seal; making a whole big deal about it. But think about it – isn't it weird that Caleb talks like he cares about what happens at the school but he's basing his operations at the winery?"

There was a pensive silence while Buffy gazed at the crowd of people.

"So you think there's something more about the winery than we know about?" Giles mused thoughtfully.

"Well yeah, there's something going on – Bringers with their sharp sharp knives!" Anya said in an urgent voice.

"Not to mention a dude that can knock a slayer senseless with one punch," Kennedy added. Then, seeing Buffy's pained look she quickly back-pedaled. "I mean, um, sorry, Buffy."

"It's fine," Buffy said in a tightly controlled voice as she gazed at her bandaged hands that were recovering from her earlier fight. "And yeah, Giles, I think there is something. I mean, the bad guys go to where the power is, always."

"You're right," Willow stated as thirteen heads whipped in her direction. "We have some new intel, thanks to Faith figuring something out."

Faith looked surprised at the praise that Willow had given her and immediately sat up from her slouched position. "Wha? Naw, man. I just happened to get lucky during Luna's make-over time."

"What happened?" Buffy asked in a puzzled voice.

"When Faith tried to get Luna to try on a new pair of earrings instead of her radish ones, Luna freaked."

Luna obviously felt awkward by this attention and immediately began fiddling with her wand.

"Faith and I figured out that something unnatural was up; what with the way Luna was reacting, and took those earrings out. We found out that one of those earrings was cursed with a memory blocking spell – one that intentionally made Luna forget the night she met that old woman in the graveyard."

"You mean the night of our Slayers versus Wizards competition?" Sirius asked.

"Yes," Willow nodded. Turning to Luna she asked in a soft voice. "Luna, do you feel comfortable discussing it?"

Pale blue eyes gazed up at her and nodded before she turned to face everyone's shocked faces. "We were unable to speak long, but she called herself a Guardian and that there was two more of her kind. She also said that I was to lead Buffy to a 'weapon that will change everything if all that is foretold comes to pass'. Then she was murdered by the Killing Curse."

Immediately the room roared with noise.

"A weapon? That Scythe thing?"

"Killing Curse? So you're saying that a wizard was in on it!"

"Where is it?"

"What the heck is a guardian, anyways?"

"Probably was Lucius or his cronies that killed her."

"FOCUS, PEOPLE!" Buffy shouted as everyone's conversations were becoming uncontrollable. Once they quieted down she said, "Good. That's more like it. So Luna, do you think it is the same weapon that Luke's book talked about?"

Her large eyes blinked slowly as she appeared to look at something far away. "I- I'm not sure. I think I felt it when we were there last week – something good and powerful surrounded by evil. But I can't tell what it was."

Buffy's jaw dropped. "So there _is_ something there," she said softly.

"Excellent," Sirius clapped his hands. "Considering I was indisposed during the last fight, I am ready to cash in my raincheck. When do we fight?"

"Whoa, wizard dude," Rona held her hands up in outrage. "Last time we went there people died, I got a broken arm, every one of the other potentials got hurt, and all sorts of badness happened."

"Yeah, gotta agree with Rona on that one," Xander sighed in a melancholy way.

"What?" Buffy asked in a surprised voice as she stared at them in shock. "Don't you remember what Luke's book said?"

"Yes, the book mentions the beginning of the world and the final banishment of the Turok-Han that came from a strong woman wielding a scythe – a powerful, mystical weapon," Luke piped up. "Considering that the book says that it was a group named the 'Guardians' who created the weapon specifically for the Slayer, I have to say that Luna's weapon is probably the same one."

"And if it works on those crazy ass vamps that B. talked 'bout, then you know it'll make a fine sliced preacher man ham," Faith added with an anticipatory grin. "I think we should go in."

"Yeah, but so says one of the few of us with super fast healing powers and strength!" Rona complained in a frustrated voice.

"She's got a point," Robin rumbled. "Should we really risk more of these girls' lives just because Luna supposedly thinks there's a weapon there?" Robin asked skeptically.

"Oi mate, don't be picking on Luna," Spike said in a voice that leaned heavily towards a low growl. "She's the only one 'round here who can see things proper most of the time."

"She talks to the stars," Robin scoffed. "That's crazy. How can we risk our lives based on anything she says?"

Snarling, Spike evacuated his seat and leaned close to Robin's face. "She's special, she is, and there's a whole bunch of things crazier than speaking to the bloody stars. So you take that back, mate, or things aren't going to be pretty, I assure ya."

Robin jumped up; his chair falling backwards, and faced Spike. With his shaking body displaying the adrenaline coursing through his veins, he spat in a low, deadly voice, "Oh trust me, I would love for it to come to that. Too bad you're still chipped like a caged beast and can't fight back. Normally I wouldn't fight something that can't fight back, but I'll make an exception for you."

"Chip or no chip, I'll find a way to make you regret those words, boy," Spike threatened in a seething tone.

"Guys!" Buffy yelled as she emerged between the two and pushed them back. "Dial back the testosterone!"

"Dammit, Buffy!" Robin snapped. "Why do you always protect Spike when he's nothing better than a demon?"

"He has a soul," Buffy replied testily while Robin just scoffed at her remark.

"So did Adolf Hitler," the principal grunted as he glared at the vampire.

"Right, well at least I don't go picking on wee little girls," Spike snapped back.

"No, you just like eating th—," Robin said in a low, sarcastic voice.

"Silence!" Willow shouted as she clapped her hands together; effectively using her magic to cut off everyone's speech – which they realized as soon as they tried to comment. "Look, it's okay to have a difference of opinion but you do _not_ need to speak about or to fellow members of our group like that. We lost last week and we're bound to lose again if we all just argue with each other. So, if everyone is ready to speak like an adult, I'll give you your voices back," she stated with her infamous 'Resolve Face'.

Once they nodded in stunned unison, Willow dissolved the spell.

"Okay, thanks Will," Buffy gave her a gratified look. "Now, are there any other comments?"

"I daresay, we may need to do as you suggest and go in," Giles murmured as he absent-mindedly cleaned his glasses. "If that weapon is there – one that is especially known for killing the Turok-Han – then we should have it. Not to mention, as long none of the wizards get attacked again, we should be able to have the upper hand."

After a brief silence where no one spoke, Buffy raised her arm. "Okay, all for fighting, raise your hand."

Strongly believing that going there was the right thing to do because of Luna's words, Willow raised her hand. Glancing around the room she saw that Buffy, Faith, Giles, Spike, Vi, Kennedy, Dawn, Luke, and Luna all raised their hands as well.

The only 'no' votes were Xander, Robin, and Rona,

"Then it's settled," Buffy smiled grimly. "We'll be going in – but this time we'll be prepared."

"Well, if we are going in, then I guess I'll enjoy showing that bastard just how well I can see," Xander's lips formed a secretive smile.

"You mean you're excited to show him your pirate patch?" Dawn asked in a confused tone.

"Nope," Xander grinned wildly. "Thanks to Anya and Remus, I've got a trick up my sleeve… Or would that be my socket? Anyhoo, check it out!" Xander ripped off his eye patch and everyone yelped or gasped in shock as they stared at his left eye – an eye that looked realistic and similar in shade to his other brown one, but moved with a frightening speed as it spun in its socket.

"Xander, what the hell?" Willow screeched at the crazy eye.

"Oh my god! Anya got you one of those magical eyes we were playing with in the Wizarding village!" Dawn shouted as she pointed at him.

"Yup," Xander gave Anya a thankful smile. "She did. I can modify it to look realistic and not move all crazy, but if I want this eye has 360 degrees visibility, has x-ray vision, and can even see out the back of my head!"

"Xand, that's awesome!" Buffy said gleefully.

"Yeah, Xander, wow," Willow smiled happily at her best friend.

"Wait a moment – no wonder you won all those poker games!" Sirius pointed out as the realization hit him.

"And you did read my letter!" Dawn huffed; both hands on her hips. "And then you made me feel all guilty for accusing you of doing that!"

Xander smiled sheepishly at them. "What? Come on, what would _you_ do with a magical eye?"

A moment of silence descended onto the group as they pondered that. Then Buffy looked up at Xander in disgust.

"Oh my god, Xander. Please do not tell me you used your x-ray powers to see us as naked!"

"Well… Not everyone… Not the guys or the teenagers, anyhow," Xander shrugged his shoulders innocently.

"XANDER!"

* * *

Strong arms caught Willow by surprise as they wrapped around her waist from behind. "The way you took charge in that meeting today was _very_ hot, Ms. Rosenberg," Sirius whispered into her ear; his hot breath tickling her.

Willow turned around and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Oh really?" she asked with a raised eyebrow and green eyes that glittered mischievously like sun-lit jewels.

With a solemn nod he replied, "Oh yes. In fact, I think that you should probably take a break from your potion-making and come upstairs for a moment."

Giggling, she raised her lips to meet his for a lingering kiss. Sometimes Willow couldn't believe how Sirius' presence made her feel like a giggling school girl; but she loved the feeling.

"Yo Red, yo Mad Dog!" Faith greeted with a salacious smirk as she waltzed into the kitchen with Remus at her side. Of course with Faith, everyone had to have some sort of nickname and once she had seen Sirius' animagus form, Mad Dog it was for him. "Don't tell me you guys were 'bout to get all freaky right here in the kitchen? 'Cause, if so, lemme heat up some popcorn first."

Remus, Sirius, and Willow joined Faith in laughing; although Willow couldn't help but feel a bit flushed at being caught like she was back in school with Snyder lurking down the hall. However, Faith was much better than Snyder, thank the goddess.

"Sure, Faith," Sirius grinned. "Maybe we can sell tickets," he asked Willow with a wicked gleam in his eye.

She rolled her eyes. "I think I'll pass."

"I think I saw – or rather heard – enough of your exploits back at Hogwarts in our dorm. So I'll have to pass as well," Remus said dryly as he too rolled his eyes.

Willow joined the others in laughter, but hers was a weak addition. She knew that teenage Sirius was not the same as her Sirius¸ but Remus' innocent remark really hit her in the gut. Just the thought that Sirius had been intimate with dozens of other girls – she had never asked for a number but she had a vague estimation – made her ill. At once it made her feel both inadequate – wondering if Sirius was happy just being with one woman, sexually at least, and jealous that so many had come before her.

Even though realistically she knew where she stood with Sirius and that he loved her… Well, she still couldn't shake that sick feeling in her stomach.

"Anyhow, sorry to break up your romantic rendezvous, but Padfoot we need to meet with Luke and Kennedy to discuss magical battle strategy," Remus informed. "Oh, and so nothing bad happens again Buffy and Xander will be strategizing with us and carrying, quote, 'Mr. Pointy' and some other weapons."

Sirius' eyes brightened at the idea of the upcoming fight. "Excellent." He gave Willow a kiss on the cheek and laid a hand on her opposite check. "Raincheck on our picnic on account of battle preparation madness?"

She smiled, feeling herself warm where he touched her. "Yeah. A post-battle picnic would probably be a good way to relax."

"Alright, see you later, luv," he said with a lopsided grin.

"Bye," she smiled as Sirius and Remus left the room.

Still smiling to herself, Willow went back to preparing her potions that would hopefully assist with the next battle.

"Damn, Red. You're blushing more than you did in High School with the Oz man," Faith grinned as she slouched into the chair across from Willow and began snacking on some chips that had been left out.

Scowling, Willow looked up at Faith. "Oh, quiet you," she said in a friendly tone as her fingers began tightening the corks on several bottles.

"Naw, man. Don't be embarrassed. You got a good guy. Sirius is real cool."

"I know," Willow smiled. "Sometimes I'm just so happy that he didn't go crazy in Azkaban like most people do and found me."

"Yeah, damn. I still can't believe the stories Sirius has told about that place," Faith frowned. "That's all sorts of nasty."

Looking up sharply from placing the bottles in a box, Willow frowned slightly at Faith's remarks. "He's told you about that?" A tickling of some emotion – Jealousy? Hurt? – passed through her at that announcement. After so many months of being in a relationship, that was still some things that Sirius rarely spoke to her about. All she knew was how horrible the dementors were and depressing the place was.

"Oh, yeah," Faith shrugged. "We were trading prison stories. I still can't believe that the poor dude was locked up for so long even though he was innocent!" Faith shook her head with a grimace on her face.

"Yeah," Willow said slowly; wondering just how much Faith and Sirius were hanging out. "So you guys hang out a lot?"

Faith looked thoughtful as she chewed noisily on some chips. "Kinda," she said as she swallowed. "He was really nice when I first got here; gave me some props for coming back when he couldn't even go back to certain parts of England after his own exploits. Sirius is cool," she nodded. "You're a lucky girl, Red," added with a grin.

"Yeah," Willow repeated herself in a monotone as she nodded slowly; trickles of worry, hurt, and jealously churning in her stomach into a whirlpool of doubt. "I am. By the way, what parts of England did he mean?"

'_Because he had never mentioned anything like that to me, his girlfriend,"_ Willow added silently.

"Oh, you know. James and Lily's house where they were murdered and that cemetery. 'Cause of the guilt and all that. And, you know, with all that guilt from the First when he was kidnapped, I wonder if he ever will return there. Poor dude feels so bad."

Faith's eyes then grew round as she came to understand the expression on Willow's face. "Aw, fuck… He didn't tell you that?" she winced.

"No," Willow said in a quiet voice as she put her slightly shaking hands underneath the table. "He barely mentions any of that – and won't ever talk about what happened while he was kidnapped."

"Aw, fuck," Faith sighed as she gave Willow a guilty look. "Red, I didn't know that. I mean, he didn't tell me that much, ya know?"

"More than me," Willow said tightly as she looked down at the table.

"Well, you know he loves you. I bet it doesn't mean anything," Faith offered in a valiant attempt to make Willow feel better.

"Yeah." Willow stood up. "I'll see you later, Faith."

As Willow walked upstairs she felt the tears threatening to fall but she pushed them back until she was in the safety of her bedroom. Curled into a ball on their bed, she wondered why Sirius was so opposed to tell her _any_ of his darker things but he could tell Faith – of all people! Faith, who in high school had sequestered off Buffy and had taken Xander's virginity; even though Willow had been dating Oz a part of her had always thought that there was still a future for her and Xander. But Faith destroyed that illusion.

Maybe… Maybe it was because Sirius was attracted to Faith? After all, she was beautiful in that trampy sort of way that guys liked. And she was overtly sexual… just how Sirius used to be.

Oh goddess. Willow sniffled as the betrayal twisted in her stomach like a knife. What if Sirius _had_ tired of her? What if he wanted Faith now? After all, who could blame him? Willow wasn't very exciting compared to Faith who could literally undress men with her eyes and had giant amounts of cleavage that was way to damn bouncy and eye attracting.

Eventually Willow fell asleep; her dreams plagued by visions of her standing alone on a cold night while she stared through a window at a happy family of Sirius, Faith, and Harry laughing by a fireplace.

* * *

A/N:

Alas! A battle doth approacheth and prayhaps our Hero and Heroine may have their own battle to overcome!

References:  
*Luke's book was brought up in the last scene of Chapter 59: Storyteller


	72. Black and Red, and Bad All Over

Faith stormed into the library where Sirius, Remus, Luke, Kennedy, Xander, and Buffy were all going over the battle strategy. She was furious that her new friend had majorly fucked things up with a person that was just starting to get cool with her. After all their long talks Faith owed it to Sirius to make him realize his screw-up; not to mention she was pretty pissed on Willow's behalf.

Honestly – why were men so _stupid_?

"Okay, cool," Buffy grinned at the OSS Agent. "So if you can get those portkeys to drop us right into the wine cellar we can totally get the jump on Caleb."

"It'll be a piece of cake," Luke grinned flirtatiously at Faith's fellow slayer.

"What if there are any Turok-Han there?" Remus asked. "We know Buffy killed the one, but for all we know more could have been released before Andrew closed the seal."

"Well, magic doesn't work on them," Kennedy grimaced. "So not sure what good we can do."

"True," Sirius breathed out as his eyes lit up with an idea. "We cannot use magic _on_ them but we can use magic _against_ them!"

"What are you saying?" Xander asked.

"We can use defensive spells – like creating a crater that they fall into or layering the floor with ice so they fall. Hell, we could even enchant our weapons to fly at them! With magic those puppies would have the power to cut into those bastards!"

Buffy's mouth dropped open. "Sir! You are a freaking genius!"

Remus clapped him on the back. "Excellent idea. Glad to know that mad Marauder mind is still at work, Padfoot," he grinned.

"Hey," Faith interrupted from her post at the doorway. "You guys finished yet? I've been waiting."

Buffy gave her a confused look and glanced at Xander. "Um, yeah, just about. Just got the details and they got the spell prep. What's the what? You need me?"

"No," Faith shook her head as she glared at Sirius. "I need Mad Dog real quick."

"Um." Buffy glanced at Faith's angry form and at Sirius' perplexed expression. "O-kay, I guess."

Sirius stood up and walked over towards Faith as everyone watched them. "What is it, Faith?"

"Wait 'til we find an empty room," she muttered through clenched teeth. Opening the door to the study near the kitchen she glared at the five girls who were reading, including Dawn and Luna. "Clear out kiddies," Faith ordered. "We need this for a sec."

With her tone indicating that Faith was _not_ to be questioned, the teenagers quickly evacuated to the hallway.

"Okay Faith, what is the matter?" Sirius asked in an annoyed tone.

Faith turned towards him with flashing eyes and crossed arms. "Did you really not tell Red 'bout any of your Azkaban stuff or not visiting James and Lily's place or the whole torture bit?"

"Wha—" Sirius' mouth dropped open in surprise. "Why do you ask?" he questioned in a more recovered tone.

"Because, you idiot, we were talking about you and I mentioned it and poor Red looks like you just ritualistically murdered her cat!" she huffed.

"Ah, well actually Miss Kitty Fantastico died from a cross—"

"Shut up, and don't change the subject," Faith interrupted angrily. "Listen Mad Dog, you did a favor for me by being the only person nice to me those first few days so now lemme do one for you. Willow is more disappointed than someone after seeing a M. Night Shymalan movie and it's all 'cause you told me things that she said you won't talk to her about!"

"Well, uh, I didn't, not exactly, not tell her," Sirius replied in a flabbergasted way. "I mean, sure I never told her all the details but, well," he shrugged helplessly.

"Dammit," Sirius signed in a resigned tone after a pause. "She's really mad?"

"Probably more like hurt, you idiot," Faith grimaced. "And let's not forget, besides all your business, that I'm actually on cool terms with her, Buffy, and some of the others – for the first time in years. But with you playing Real World confessional cam with me, I'm sure they ain't gonna be happy with me, either."

An expression of blended pensiveness and pain was interrupted by a nod. "Thanks Faith, I'll go talk to her."

"You better, Mad Dog!" Faith called threateningly as Sirius walked out the door.

* * *

Feeling the depression on the side of the bed next to her, Willow instinctively rolled over and snuggled closer to Sirius. He was sitting down so she wrapped her arm around his lap and pressed her face against his leg. Sirius was so warm and smelled so good; Willow just wanted to stay in her happy half-awake state with him.

"Willow?" he asked in slight surprise. "Are you awake?"

"Yeah," she yawned; wondering why he sounded so surprised. Then she remembered with a start that Sirius Black was the last person that she had wanted to talk to!

With a quick jerk, her head snapped up and Willow moved to the other side of the bed. "What are you doing here?" she asked warily with narrowed eyes.

Sirius sighed and bowed his head as he ran a hand through his disheveled hair. "Faith talked to me," he told her without making eye contact.

Furious, Willow stood up and glared at him. "Oh? Having yet another talk with Faith? How nice," her voice dripped like poisoned honey.

Surprised by her tone, Sirius' head lurched upwards. "Willow, I don't get the tone," he said in an annoyed voice. "There really is no reason for it."

"No reason?" she scoffed with a derisive laugh as her arms extended towards the heavens. "Oh right, yeah, sure. Faith just so happens to be the one person —_woman_ — you can talk to 'round here."

"Willow," Sirius said in a disbelieving voice. "Why are you so angry? So I just told Faith some things that I didn't tell you – what's so wrong with that?"

Willow let out a scathing laugh as she shook her head. "Sirius, are you really that dense? For being so much older you can be so slow sometimes!" she stated in an exasperated voice.

"How about I'm angry that after repeatedly asking you about that day when you were kidnapped you never told me anything? Or that after seven months of dating you've never opened up to me like you just did to Faith after knowing her less than two weeks!" Willow's words were angry and harsh, but her voice trembled slightly at the same time.

"Have you ever considered that maybe it's bloody difficult for me to tell you those things? To tell you the worst parts of me? To have you pity me, or worst, feel ashamed of me?" Sirius asked her hotly.

"Yes! I know talking about things can be hard, but dammit Sirius if you can't tell your girlfriend – who you supposedly _love_ – about that, then what does that say about us? We're supposed to share everything!" Willow answered angrily, but her tone was slightly pleading at the same time.

Sirius let out a frustrated noise as he began pacing the length of their room. "Right, because you were so forthcoming when we first met," he scoffed.

"Oh. My. Goddess. You did _not_ just go there. Yeah, because I was going to tell a scruffy homeless man that I had flayed a person before! Seriously, did you really just bring that up, from ages ago? Because you were a liar too, _Padfoot_!"

Willow clenched her fists; she could not believe how irrational Sirius could be sometimes!

"Merlin, Willow. This is rediculous," he sighed as he gazed at her with his bright grey eyes. "Listen, I'm sorry I told Faith but it was just easier to talk to her about it. She gets that part of me."

Willow felt like he shot an arrow through her heart and now it was gushing hot, heavy blood within her chest. "So it's easier to talk to Faith than it is to me?" she asked in a quiet voice. "She 'gets' you?"

"Fuck," Sirius muttered softly at his stupidity as he pressed a hand to his temple.

"No," he stated emphatically as he looked at her face. "I don't mean it like that, Willow."

"Then how do you mean it?" she asked in that same small voice.

"Just…" he shrugged helplessly. "I'm sorry, but you can't understand everything. The choices I made resulted in the deaths of people I loved and I did them out of my own sheer stupidity. So did Faith. But your issues aren't the same so it's just—" again, Sirius shrugged.

"Aren't the same?" Willow asked in a venomous tone. "What the heck does that mean?"

"It means that you have an excuse –your addiction and grief – that you can blame on it all. Me and Faith? We did them because of pure human stupidity!" Sirius threw his arms up in the air as he shouted in an exasperated voice.

Willow felt her breath catach in her throat and she spoke slowly for emphasis in a tightly controlled voice. "You mean, I am making excuses? And therefore my mistakes aren't as _good_ as yours?"

"Willow, I'm sorry, but you can't get mad about that. It is true. And _no_, they're not worst or better, they just are what they are." Sirius rubbed the back of his neck in an effort to release some tension.

"Right," Willow rolled her eyes. "Then why don't you date Faith? Since you can't talk to me but sure as hell can talk to her, go for it. Besides, I bet you've just been dying to be with her, anyways!"

"OH!" Sirius exclaimed snidely with raised eyebrows. "That's what this is all bloody about. It ain't just about me not telling you things – you're jealous because of your Faith issues."

Willow scowled and jabbed her finger against his chest. "You're the one spending so much quality time with her, not to mention your former days of man-slutiness, so what am I supposed to think?"

"This is too rich," Sirius laughed. "When I was jealous over Kennedy trying to get with you, you brushed off my concerns as crazy. But now look at you, all worried even though I bloody love you – even if I am pissed at you for being crazy right now! – and Faith has no interest in me!"

Her blood boiled as she removed her hand from Sirius' chest; noticing that her mood ring was pure black, signifying that she was angry. Yeah, anger was an understatement right now.

"How dare you laugh at me!" Willow hissed. "I had to deal with crazy Sirius all ordering me who to dance with and who not to dance with and now look at you, Mr. Pot Calling the Kettle Black!"

"You act like I had no reason to be mad when Kennedy made her intentions towards you clear and you still hung out with her all the time. 'Oh, but Sirius, she understands my love for magic and is part of my new coven'," Sirius said in a falsetto voice.

"And now you get bloody mad at me – bloody hypocrite you are, woman!" Sirius added loudly.

"That's it!" Willow shouted right into his face. "I'm done with this. You've got no _bloody_," she mocked, "right to call me a hypocrite. Fine, you can't talk to me, then don't. In fact, don't ever talk to me again! Talk to your best buddy Faith!"

"Fine then, I bloody won't be talking to you again, you crazy bird! You can do all the soddin' magic you want with your precious little bitch-witch. See if I care!" he yelled back at her.

"Good! Then get your stupid stuff out of here! No, wait, I'll do it for you!" Willow focused her magic to find each items that belonged to Sirius and tossed them out the door.

"Gee, thanks sweetheart. You're so helpful," Sirius muttered sarcastically in a false cheerful tone. "Would you like me to bloody get Kennedy's belongings as well?"

Willow aimed a fake smile at him. "Oh no, that's alright. After all, all I need is her naked body in my bed – not any belongings."

Sirius' jaw dropped in astonishment at that stab. "Well, have a good time with that slag, then! And good riddance to your craziness!" He turned around and stalked out the door.

But before he left the room Willow shouted, "Yeah, and good luck with all those diseases Faith probably has!"

Shaking, she used her magic to slam the door shut from where she stood. She swallowed thickly and felt warm from their heated argument; barely even registering the warmth emanating from her ring that was still a deep abyss of black color.

* * *

The next morning Sirius felt sick when he woke up from his position on the living room couch. The stares of everyone when they saw him sleeping there were annoying enough, but worse was Willow's seeming obliviousness to his presence. Throughout breakfast she had evaded his gaze and spent the time talking to Buffy and that bloody Kennedy.

Yup. Forget thinking that Kennedy might be an alright bird – after his argument with Willow last night he was back to hating her.

Sirius still couldn't believe how out of control things had gotten. Sure, they had had their share of arguments – beginning with her getting mad at his inability to put effort into meditating to the night he tried to leave after the First visited him, and various smaller arguments that all couples are prone to have. But last night – last night was the worst. It made his stomach feel perpetually sour and his muscles tense beyond measure.

He was afraid that last night may have been their last argument. Ever.

The way that Willow had looked at him at the end when she kicked him out – there had been so much anger in her face; like she actually hated him. And quite frankly, he was confused about how things had disintegrated. Sure, he had told Faith some things that he avoided telling Willow – but he had explained why! Willow was so pure – issues with magical addiction aside – that he didn't think she truly understood his remorse with what happened to the Potters – and his brother. Yes, she had committed heinous acts but it was almost, as the Muggles would call it, an insanity defense; she wasn't quite in her right mind at those times.

But Sirius, he had been. And he had to live with the guilt of his stupidity. Sometimes he didn't even think he was good enough for Willow. And then there was Faith who had experienced life on the inside of prison walls where despair is constant and hope is elusive. Faith understood remorse and what it was like to hate a part of you. Willow, he thought, just didn't.

In fact, it was making Sirius angry all over again to think about her being mad at him. Especially when she was being so hypocritical about his friendship with Faith when it was like Willow was constantly dangling a raw steak in front of a wolf – her hanging out with a woman who was attracted to her was obviously a bad idea!

Especially when said woman was a no-good, bitchy, abrasive, stupid slag.

So fine. Fine! If Willow wanted to throw their relationship away then she bloody well could. See if he cared!

… Dammit. Why did he care?

* * *

Willow shakily began filling the knapsacks that the three invading teams would be wearing with some of the potions, magical crystals, and special powders that she had been preparing all throughout her sleepless night; along with various others dropping in to help, such as Remus, Kennedy, Anya, and Dawn.

Of course, it had been sleepless because she couldn't refrain from agonizing over every scrutinized detail of their argument. Willow was amazingly hurt by his callous inability to consider her feelings and beyond angry by his accusations. In fact, every time she thought of Sirius her mood ring flashed black – she was just so angry with him!

But it was probably for the best. After today, hopefully they would be closer to eliminating the First. Then all the potentials would go home and so would the wizards. Besides, what future did she really have with Sirius? He could be an absolute idiot sometimes _plus_ he was a freaking escaped convict – they'd have to be looking over their shoulders the rest of their lives, constantly on the run!

Of course, she would miss Harry. But maybe if Dawn went to Hogwarts next year then Willow could visit the both of them.

Gah. Willow still couldn't help but think about Sirius' stupid accusations. Like she would ever cheat on him with Kennedy! She wasn't a cheater!

Well, okay, so there was that one time senior year…

But still – she was not going to cheat on him.

Or maybe that should be 'wouldn't have' cheated on Sirius… After all, last night's argument pretty clearly signified that they maybe weren't together anymore.

Ha, just to mess with Sirius she _almost_ wanted to flirt with Kennedy in front of him – just out of spite. Besides, Kennedy really was pretty beautiful.

…Whoa. Where did that come from? Well, Willow always did think she was attractive but the thought of flirting with Kennedy – maybe even kissing her – suddenly made Willow feel all tingly in the good way – but not good in this situation – way.

Willow groaned as she glanced at her mood ring. Yup. It was definitely pulsing red, which meant 'love' or 'aroused'. Well that was no good. She didn't want to have hot, dirty thoughts about Kennedy!

Sure, Kennedy was gorgeous and they were good friends who had _so_ much in common – from absentee parents to their shared love of Indian food; plus there was this way that Kennedy looked at her sometimes that made her toes curl. And when Kennedy laughed her whole face would light up; she had the sort of laugh that made Willow think she could listen to that sound for the rest of her life.

Oh goddess. She gulped as the mood ring pulsed red – she should not be having these thoughts! At all! What she should be doing is worrying about Sirius and trying to make up with him.

…So why didn't she want to?

* * *

"Okay," Buffy said as she held up her hands for quiet in front of the crowd of fifty-some people in her living room two days after Luna's announcement.

"We've gone over this multiple times in smaller groups but let's make sure we're all on the same page. Xand?" Buffy asked her now two-eyed friend.

"As you know, according to the message from the Guardian and Luna's visions, we believe that a powerful slayer weapon that can kill those uber-vamps is being hidden in the wine cellar. Last time we were there, we got our ask kicked. But not this time."

Xander taped a large sheet of paper onto the wall behind him that read:

**Teams:****  
**  
**Alpha: **Buffy, Luke, Kennedy, Luna, Vi, Chloe, Becky, Chao-Ahn (8)  
_Mission:_ Search unit for the Slayer Scythe.

**Beta: **Faith, Sirius, Robin, Rona, Caridad, Issa, Erica, Lisa (8)  
_Mission:_ Distract Gang F for Team Alpha; take the fight to Caleb

**Gamma**: Xander, Spike, Remus, Amanda, Yelena, Aryll, Christy, Ida (8)  
_Mission:_ Serve as back up for Teams Alpha & Beta; take out the Bringers

**Home Base: **Willow, Giles, Andrew, Dawn, Anya, other twenty-three potentials (25)  
_Mission:_ Await notice from Teams A, B, or C; prepare house in case of return assault; prepare for wounded

_**Home Base Sub Teams**_:  
**Delta aka Team Outer Security**: Willow, Buckbeak, Aja, Jordan, Andie, Merlyna, Jade, Nickole  
**Epsilon aka Team East Wing Security**: Giles, Shannon, Alana, Sofia, Athena, Ivana,  
**Zeta aka Team West Wing Security**: Dawn, Shanna, Venus, Skye, Aiko,  
**Eta, aka Team Healer**: Anya, Andrew, Rosa, Linda, Marie, Aria, Ruriko,

"This time we're going to be prepared. Our three invading teams each consist of at least one super person – Buffy, Faith, and Spike, one magic user – Luke, Luna, Sirius, Kennedy, and Remus, and the potential slayers who have received the most training and show the most capability. Of course, there are others who were very good but did not make the cut due to the need to keep the team size trimmed down.

"Now, Teams Alpha and Beta will be portkeying directly into the wine cellar while Team Gamma will portkey to the lawn outside to take out potential reinforcements. Each team member will be outfitted with weapons of their choice but each team must consist of at least one bowman – bowperson!" Xander corrected with a grin as almost fifty females glared at him.

"In addition, each team member will have a knapsack of special toys that Willow has developed. Will?"

Willow stood up and blinked her eyes so she felt more awake – she hadn't slept much better last night than the one before; still upset about Sirius and now her new feelings towards Kennedy.

"Each knapsack has several items. One, thanks to Remus, is a Pepper-Up potion. If you take a couple hits and are feeling weak, this will bring back your strength. Think of it like a hardcore energy drink," she grinned.

"Then there's mist power. If you need to get away or want a sneaky attack, tossing this in the air will form a thick cloud of fog that will limit visibility. Normally this would make it also hard for you to see but I added a 'lil somethin' something' so it will only distress the vision of evil beings.

"Next is a vial of liquid ice. Yeah, I know, liquid ice is water. And it is, in the vial. But if you toss it on the ground the released water will form a thick layer of ice measuring around five by ten feet.

"And that's it," Willow completed. "That was the most Remus, Kennedy," was it just her or did Sirius flinch when she said her name? "Anya, Dawn, and I could do in such a short time."

"Thanks Will," Buffy smield gratefully as she stood up again. "Trust me, it's a lot. And while we have waited a couple days there is no telling how long that weapon will stay there so we do need to move as quickly as possible. Giles, you wanna talk 'bout home team?"

"Yes, certainly," Giles said as he stood up. "There is no telling if a direct rebuttal will occur after our three teams attack the wine cellar. Since our defenses were last broken, Willow and Kennedy have increased the strength in the wards. However, we must be ready in case something happens. Willow's team will be patrolling outside the home – but still within the wards – and Buckbeak will be watching from the skies. My team will observe the East Wing, Dawn's the West, and Anya's will be coordinating our assisting healers in preparation in case we need them."

As Giles sat down, Buffy stood again. "Okay, any questions?

"Yeah!" Anya huffed. "Why do I get Dork Boy?"

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Any _other_ questions?

"Yeah," Aria, one of the youngest girls and a member of Anya's team. "I'm the same age as Luna – why don't I get to go on the cool mission?"

"Because," Buffy said patiently. "Luna knows where this thing is. Once we're there she can track it. Plus, she's a witch so she has more to work with than most people when it comes to staying safe."

"Okay, anything else?" Seeing none, Buffy nodded. "Alright, Teams Alpha, Beta, and Gamma load up and head to the back yard! Portkeys depart in fifteen minutes."

* * *

Buffy gazed at her team members and held out an old fisherman's boot. "Okay, everyone place a hand on this and get ready for a wild ride."

"Maybe when we get back I can show you a wild ride?" Luke smirked at her as his hand oh-so casually ran over hers as he grabbed the boot.

Feeling a little flutter in her stomach, Buffy pushed it down quickly. "Do you ever stop?" she asked in an annoyed and exasperated voice; but secretly she was starting to enjoy his over the top flirtations.

"Not until the chase is over," he grinned.

"Well that will be never," she told him sternly with a smirk on her face before she felt a tugging around her navel.

Shutting her eyes, Buffy willed herself to not get nauseous from the wild ride. Quickly it ended and Buffy was deposited on a hard tiled floor. "Ow," she winced. Knowing that time was of the essence she quickly got her bearings and jumped to her feet; her sword unsheathed and outstretched.

"Team Alpha, get ready!" she whispered as her fellow teammates stood up. As her eyes searched for faces in the almost pitch-black darkness, Buffy frowned.

"Where's Luke?"

"Ain't that always like a woman – lookin' to a man for her needs; unable to do nothin' on her own," a familiar voice sneered through the darkness.

Buffy froze as bright lights exploded above them. Covering her eyes from the blinding light, Buffy blinked warily and took in her surroundings. "What the heck?" she gasped.

Because they weren't in the wine cellar like they had planned. No, they were in some sort of sterile looking warehouse with shiny equiptment and gleaming tiled floors. One of the pieces of equiptment was a very long conveyer belt with heavy-looking flat metal plates raised above it. The place smelled of grapes and she wondered if they were still at the winery somewhere, but she wasn't sure.

However, what she was sure of was the fact that Team Alpha was locked behind some sort of humming electric cage that had no walls but the air at the edges of their small square crackled with powerful energy that Buffy bet wasn't going to let her pass through. Even worse, Buffy saw Caleb standing with two dozen Bringers while Teams Beta and Gamma locked behind separate energy cages as well.

"Welcome, Slayer and friends!" beamed Caleb. "It is oh _so_ good to have you here," he smiled wickedly – and Buffy felt a stab of panic.

After all their planning they had walked into an even worse trap than the last one.

* * *

A/N:

Please review, 'o' Faithful Readers! :)

References:  
* M. Night Shymalan movie- Bah. First couple big movies were good but he's had a slew of horrible ones – AND he just ruined the last Airbender! So I curse him and couldn't help but have Faith take a shot as well ;)

* Real World confessional cam with me—MTV reality show (first reality show ever) where participants go into a room and confess all to a camera.


	73. Vino de Slayer

Vino de Slayer

**Author Notes: **

Woooooo-Hooooo! Willow's Thief got some nominations! *Jumps up and down wildly* This is suuuupeeeeeeeeeeer exciting!

First off, there is a COA Nomination at Twisting the Hellmouth (I guess the only category that allows unfinished fics, probably since it's a Mod one). So to whoever nominated this fic for 'Demona's 'That didn't suck!' Award, thank you for thinking Willow's Thief didn't suck! *grins*

**Willow's Thief was also nominated for the following categories at the ****SunnyD Awards ****:  
**  
*Best Crossover Book  
*Best Crossover Book Pairing  
*Best Plot  
*Best Romance  
*Best Unfinished

Voting occurs from August 1-August 30 so please think of me! (.)

**WARNING:** Got some deaths coming up. They're rather twisted… ;) But I think you'll enjoy all the action and shout-outs to readers!

Now, on to some pain!

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"Now, as you can likely tell – though I know women folk's minds can't think as quickly – your little magical tokens didn't take you where you wanted. Which first off, I have to admit, that was quite sneaky," Caleb smiled jovially as he shook a chiding finger at Buffy. "Never would have seen that coming. But luckily my man on the inside did and helped a fella out."

"Luke!" Buffy hissed; her fingers tightening their hold on her sword until her fingers ached. She should have known that something was wrong with him – she _had_ kissed him after all! Fury rose through her tensed body as she realized he had used her.

"Sounds similar to that," Caleb chuckled lowly.

A loud outburst of shouted Latin interrupted the First's right hand man, who glared at the offender. Sirius, over in Team Beta's cage was waving his wand and had sweat dripping down his forehead in intense concentration.

"Now now, Mr. Black," Caleb continued in a friendly tone. "We'll be having none of that. See, these cages have been protected against your magic." With that he held up a glowing white sphere the size of a tennis ball in one hand. "With this activated none of y'all have any hope of getting out," he grinned maliciously.

"Oh we will and as soon as we get out we'll cut you into pieces," Faith sneered as she stood next to Sirius; her fingers clenched into fists that were just begging to be released onto the demonized man.

Caleb chuckled and shook his head. "Ain't no getting out, girl. You all are going to die and I'm going to send each of ya, one by one, down that conveyer belt," he informed them as he pointed towards the machinery that Buffy had been watching earlier. "You see, that fine piece of equipment is used to stomp the grapes down so pure wine can be derived from it. But tonight," he grinned evilly, "I'll be using it to make some delicious potential slayer wine."

"You coward!" Buffy yelled as she stood as close to the magical wall without touching it' her face red with pent-up aggression. "Having to lock us up in cages! C'mon, lemme out and then we'll be seeing what kind of wine we'll be drinking tonight," Buffy provoked him in a threatening tone

Moving quickly, Caleb stepped to Team Alpha's cage and stared at the slayer with a wicked smile playing across his lips. "Trust me honey, I ain't stupid. I know y'all got some bags of nasty tricks made by your little witches.

"Speaking of those witches," Caleb spun around and faced everyone, "while we have our fun here I thought it was only appropriate to that they don't miss out back home."

Everyone blanched at his threat and their minds quickly turned to their loved ones back home.

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"Hey, Mistress Red, while you're flying around on Buckbeak ya wanna get some pizza real quick? Buffy and Faith's Mini-Me's are all busting out the growly stomachs," Anya's voice crackled over Willow's walkie-talkie.

Xander had the brilliant idea to pick up walkie-talkies for them so each Home Base Sub Team could communicate while the three offensive teams were at the vineyard. They received a slight magical tune-up so they worked similarly to cell phones since each of the team leaders – Willow, Anya, Giles, and Dawn – could hear each other and speak at once. Of course, they could have just used cell phones but Xander assured her that that would be no fun!

"Anya, what have I said about using that name? It makes me sound all S&M-ish and like I should be wearing leather," Willow replied back over the line as she rolled her eyes.

"Wil-low!" Dawn whined over the walkie-talkie. "C'mon, we all have to use code names!" The teenage witch had, unfortunately, gotten way into this aspect of 'military' life.

"Yeah, but Pez Girl isn't that bad," Willow said sullenly. "Yours makes it sound like you love tasty delicious Pez candies while mine sounds like I belong in a torture chamber with a whip!"

Dawn and Anya both laughed and she could have sworn Giles was cleaning his glasses. "Girls, may we please keep this line open for only serious matters? In case you have forgotten we are in danger while the majority of our power players are out retrieving the scythe," he said in a droll tone.

"Sure thing, G-Man!" Dawn said brightly with a giggle.

"Dear Lord," he sighed. "I _told_ Xander that I wanted a different name!"

Willow snickered as she patted Buckbeak's back absent-mindedly. As the leader of Team Delta she was soaring the skies above the backyard while the six potential slayers patrolled the grounds. It was funny how they got off poorly but now she really enjoyed riding on Buckbeak. The hippogriff had quite the personality once you got to know him and now that he allowed mind-to-mind communication they got along fabulously.

Too bad that she was not getting along fabulously with his friend.

Immediately she felt Buckbeak's mind prod her own as he sensed her negative feelings towards Sirius. She sighed; not sure how to really explain the fallout of a romantic relationship to a hippogriff. However, she tried her best using emotions and images to convey how Sirius had not trusted her and thrown her to the side now that Faith had arrived and he could confide in her.

It was weird though – something felt _off_ as she thought about Sirius. Never before had she felt so angry with him and she supposed all she could chalk it up to was feeling betrayed and just being angry at herself for wasting so much time with someone who was never going to fully commit himself to her.

Buckbeak made an angry sound and tried to push images at her of both Willow and Sirius being happy together. It appeared that he wanted his friend (because a hippogriff never had a master) and Willow to be together – he liked them like that. He even showed her earlier images of Buckbeak and Sirius staking out her cottage before they met where they saw her mental breakdowns while attempting meditation in the backyard. Her breath caught at remembering how sad she had been back then and how out of control she had felt. Buckbeak then showed her images of Sirius before she had met him – back when he was escaping Hogwarts; his body nothing but bones and how he was severely depressed.  
_  
'You make each other happier than I've ever seen you before,' _he thought in his head.

Willow grunted and her ring flashed black in the light of the nearly full moon. _'Do I look happy now?' _

Buckbeak's mind swirled at her question. _'Humans are never always happy – they enjoy making their lives too complicated. _'

She found herself laughing at his observation. That was certainly true.

Just then Buckbeak's mind screamed an alert at her. "What? What?" she asked urgently as he eyes roved through the darkness.

It was then she saw it – a small army of vampires and demons walking towards their house.

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"Now," Caleb clapped his hands loudly enough to startle them out of their dark thoughts. "Let's get this party started, shall we?" His eyes – pure obsidian – scanned their three groups. "Who will be my little guinea pig for my Vino de Slayer?"

His eyes stopped on Becky, a sixteen year old potential slayer from Cleveland whose thick brown hair was pulled back into a low ponytail. She swallowed heavily underneath Caleb's intense gaze and Buffy stepped next to her fellow Team Alpha member.

"Touch her and die," Buffy hissed protectively.

Caleb's eyebrows shot up. "Now, now, slayer," he said softly. "You need to stop making promises that you can't keep." Then he spoke to Becky. "If I remember my pictures my friend took correctly, you're Becky, aren't 'cha? Becky, wanna come out and play? he smiled evilly.

"Don't preachers prefer little boys, asshole?" she said in an angry tone; her body vibrating with adrenaline.

Caleb's face lost his next-door guy smile and immediately turned dark. "Bitch. Just like a woman to talk dirty."

"I'm from Cleveland," she snorted. "After all our problems, an evil preacher in a closet don't scare me. Cuz with the woman hating and the slimming black, I'm guessin' you're more _Ellen_ than _Oprah._"

Her words affected the rest of their teams – light snickers could be heard throughout the warehouse. Clearly she had remembered Buffy's lesson of verbal wordplay against enemies. Then again, the girl hadn't needed much help in that department when she had arrived in Sunnydale.

Closing his eyes, Caleb enclosed the glowing orb in his first and muttered an incantation. Suddenly Becky blinked out of the cage and next to Caleb.

"No!" Buffy shouted, along with the others.

Wide-eyed, Becky stared at Caleb with surprised fear, which she quickly masked as she raised her sword and swung it at Caleb. With the ease of a bear swatting a fly, Caleb sent the sword flying. "Grab her," he told the Bringers who quickly snatched her arms and legs. Within minutes, while everyone shouted threats or pleaded for leniency, Becky was strapped onto the conveyer belt.

"Let me go!" Becky shouted; her voice tinged by desperate fear.

Anger bubbled up within Buffy as she once again kicked the force field wall with no results. "Damn you Caleb!" she yelled in frustration and anger. "Leave the girl alone! You wanna kill someone, kill me!"

Chuckling darkly, Caleb winked at her. "In due time, honeypot." Then he called out to his Bringers. "Turn it on."

As Becky's screaming body slowly moved down the conveyer belt all fifteen members of the three teams were shouting, cursing, kicking their force fields, using their weapons on it, or attempting every magical spell in the book.

But there was nothing they could do as heavy metal plates repeatedly landed on top of Becky's body with enough force that they could hear each sickening crack of bone and squish of tissue.

Many of the potentials were bawling and angry sad tears stabbed the corners of Buffy's eyes. But she wouldn't let them out; she couldn't. If she allowed herself to break down right here and now then everyone was going to die just like Becky. As she took a moment to look at each of the remaining fourteen people in her care swallowed heavily and promised them all silently that tonight Caleb was going to die.

Caleb pulled up a sprout at the end of the conveyer belt and everyone cringed as red, thick liquid poured heavily into his gleaming wine goblet. He swished it lazily, breathed in the bouquet, and sipped it.

"Hmm," he licked his lips as he looked upwards in deep thought. "Not bad. Bit pulpy."

Then he gave the crowd a cruel smile. "Though I imagine that would be on account of some bits of veins and such in there."

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"Team Eppa, Zetilson, and Eata, come in!" Willow screeched into her walkie-talkie.

"Willow, it's Epsilon, Zeta, and Eta," Dawn replied back with a verbal eye-roll. "Honestly, you're no fun with this walkie-talkie stuff."

"No jokes, Dawnie. Big bads on their way!" she said back sharply as a swell of fear rose within her.

"What do you see?" Giles responded seriously.

"Vampires and demons. Not sure what kind of demons – ugh," she groaned. "Nevermind, I recognize some. Some of them are those seven foot blue scaled and feathered Raminan demons we fought during that Slayer v. Wizard competition night."

"How many?" Giles questioned.

Willow narrowed her eyes. "At least twenty vampires. Maybe five of those Raminan demons and," she continued to count silently. "Ten other random demons. All of them have weapons."

She heard Giles curse silently, Dawn gasp, and Anya groan.

"Guess my Team Eta really will be using our healing skills tonight, won't we?" she griped.

"Let us hope not, Anya. However, prep the girls – and Andrew – for battle in case anyone gets inside. Since you have the youngest girls, only twelve to fourteen, I want them to avoid fighting if necessary," Giles instructed.

"I'll take Team Zeta up on the west side roof patio that Sirius created and get our flaming arrows ready," Dawn said and in the background she could hear the witch giving orders.

"I'll take Team Epsilon," and Willow could hear the eye roll in Giles' voice – he thought the army names were silly too, "and take them out to meet your group, Willow."

"Sounds good," she said as she and Buckbeak flew down to meet her girls. "Let's hope mine and Kennedy's wards hold."

Aja, Jordan, Andie, Merlyna, Jade, and Nickole ran up to her. "What's going on?" Merlyna asked in confusion.

Willow looked at her six charges and felt a twinge of pity that these girls had to deal with so much all because some stupid Powers That Be thought they had the potential to become slayers. "Demon army," she informed them matter-of-factly. "At least thirty-five of them."

Everyone eyes grew as wide as saucer plates. "What do we do?" asked Jade, the oldest girl on their team.

"We're going to fight with Giles' team while Dawn covers us from the roof. I'm going up there to do what I can with magical attacks – which means that Buckbeak is available if someone wants to ride on him and assist with the aerial attacks. Anyone interested?"

Immediately every arm went up in an eager attempt to volunteer and Willow caught a sense of smugness from Buckbeak's amused mind. "Mmkay, now who actually is decent with a bow?"

Now only Aja, Jordan, and Nickole had their hands raised. "And has anyone ever shot an arrow while riding on an animal, like a horse?" Only Jordan still had her hand up. "Okay, congrats Jordan! As long you as greet Buckbeak properly he says he will be happy to take you up!"

The raven-haired girl grinned and brushed her thick bangs out of her eyes. "Who? Me?"

Then Willow remembered that Jordan preferred to go by her nickname 'KW', wherever that came from. "Yep, you KW."

"Sweet!" she fist pumped and went towards Buckbeak.

Willow grinned at the girl's exuberance and then levitated herself to the roof by concentrating on her magic. She was met up there by Team Zeta – Dawn, Shanna, Venus, Skye, Aiko, and Juliet – and Dawn was performing a spell on all of their arrows.

"Okay guys, I know you're just learning how to use the bow but this spell with help direct your sharp, pointy arrows at the bad guys," she grinned.

"Coooool," Shanna breathed as she inspected her weapon.

She felt movement next to her and realized that Dawn had walked up to her side as she stared at the approaching army. The demons were nearing and Willow was extremely grateful that Sunnydale's residents had already taken off – she would hate for anyone to end up in the crossfire.

"Kinda makes you think of the Lord of the Rings movies and we're at Helm's Deep," Dawn snorted as she raised her wand.

Chuckling, Willow nodded. "Yeah, but let's hope it goes better for us than them."

Dawn elbowed her. "Bet you wish your dirty-hot Aragorn man was here," she joked.

Immediately stiffening, Willow crossed her arms to ward off a sudden chill. "Uh, yeah," she agreed softly; not meaning it truly. However, the last thing she needed to do was get in an argument with Dawn about Sirius, her practically-adopted uncle that she adored. Nope, that would be a bad thing to do right before a battle.

Raising an eyebrow at her silence, Dawn patted her arm in a comforting way. "Don't worry, I'm sure they'll be fine at the vineyard."

"Yeah, well here's hoping we will too. Kennedy and I just renewed the wards," Willow stated as the demons approached their perimeter. There was a resounding, ear-splitting roar and Willow gasped as she felt the wards receive a great shock.

"Will?" Dawn asked in concern.

Willow swallowed the lump in her throat. "There's something… something wrong," she muttered as she focused on keeping the wards strong. "The wards, something's wrong with them. They've been tampered wi— Ahh!" she screamed as she fell to the floor of the roof.

"Willow! Willow! Are you okay?" Dawn asked urgently as she slightly shook Willow's shoulders.

"They're in," Willow said weakly before she lost consciousness.

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"Kennedy! Luna! Use every spell you know at the same spot of the force field. Vi! Chloe! Chao-Ahn! Keep kicking that same spot of the wall! And I'll see if I can break the floor and dig us out!" Buffy ordered in her most military voice.

"You heard B!" Faith shouted to Team Beta. "Sirius! Keep doing spell work and aim at the floor. Robin, Rona! Take this wall and start beating the shit out of it! Caridad, Issa, - you take the opposite wall! Erica, Lisa! You work with me on this wall! Let's bust out of these fuckin' things and take out that dude's eyes so he matches his damn Bringers!"

"Right, you heard the ladies!" Xander called out to Team Gamma. "Spike, Remus, focus on the floor. Amanda, Yelena, Aryll – work on that wall. Christy, Ida – work with me!"

The air was filled with grunts and warrior cries as Caleb stared at them in surprise. "My, my. You folks really don't know when you quit, do ya?" He made a 'tsk-ing' noise as he watched them. "My oh my, I'm getting tired just watching y'all."

No one even bothered to respond to the First's right hand man; too focused on their task at her. Caleb became visibly angry at being ignored and his face lost all sign of graciousness as he snarled. "I think it's time to move along and increase my supply of Vino de Slayer, don't you think?"

"You, Lisa Wolfe!" he pointed at the member of Team Beta. "You just barely escaped my boys in Mississippi before that portkey took ya. I think you'll be an excellent addition to my new wine supply," he chuckled darkly.

"NO!" Faith cried out in agony as she performed a powerful front kick on the force field wall. For so long she cared about nothing and no one; betrayed by everyone. But for the first time in her life she had come to feel like these little girls had come to depend on her in the last two weeks. Faith felt needed; felt _wanted_. Whether it was listening to them bitch about Buffy like the fun aunt or teaching them how to use a crossbow.

And she couldn't bear to let one of them die on her watch.

Caleb used his glowing orb again and suddenly Lisa's six-foot frame was shaking right next to the demonized preacher man. He grabbed her by the neck and grinned. "Lots of blood in a body this big."

"Screw you!" she gasped as she grasped a hidden dagger from her sleeve and jabbed it into his left eye.

Faith felt like a proud mother – she had instructed Lisa to hide that before they left.

"BITCH!" he spat viciously as he threw her towards the grape presser and covered his bleeding eye. "You damn, little bitch! Get her, boys!"

"Run!" Faith and the others shouted.

Lisa struggled to get up – Caleb had thrown her roughly – and began limping away, but it was no use. The Bringers quickly grabbed her and once more a potential was strapped onto the conveyer belt.

"Keep fighting!" Buffy instructed the rest of them. Because she, like Faith, knew that there was nothing more they could do for Lisa Wolfe.

And as the presser flattened her body and squeezed out her blood, they all took a moment to silently pray for the girl before continuing their fight.

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A/N:

These scenes are taking up more space than expected so I had to cut this chapter in half since it was at about 8,000 words – I think it's annoying to have chapters that long since they're hard to read in one setting and you clearly cannot bookmark a spot of a web page. So the next chap will come soon – Promise you'll really like it!

Hope the following readers enjoyed their shout outs! :)  
MistressRed, pezgirl, toynbeeluver aka Becky Beeluv, Merlyna, andiesimmo AKA Andie, Jade, Nickole, KWJordan aka Jordan 'KW', and FireWolfe aka Lisa Wolfe.

**The Raminan Demons were in Chapter 48 


	74. A Kwanza Bovu!

"A Kwanza Bovu!"

A/N:

Yeah, last chapter was depressing. But here is the second half- I do believe you shall be pleased ;) But honestly, 74 chapters into this story and this was one of my favorite to write, so enjoy!

Oh, and shameless plug—*grins* For the COAs… at Twisting the Hellmouth I've also been nominated for:

**Best New Author  
**Best Portrayal of Other Character (Andrew) for I Have Altered the Homework, Pray I Do Not…  
**Best Anita Blake Crossover for Let's Hear It for the Monsters   
**Best Femslash Pairing for A Christmas Gift for my Favorite Jewish Girl   
Voting begins August 16, 2010

So cookies to my nominators! And a big kiss! *MUAH*

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"Fucking great," Dawn cursed grimly as she stood up from Willow's unconscious body. She was glad for once that Buffy wasn't around to yell at her because Dawn thought this situation definitely deserved the f-bomb.

"Giles, Anya, Willow's passed out. The wards backfired and did something to her."

"Dammit," Giles cursed over the walkie-talkie, making Dawn feel better about her snafu. "Right then," he said in a more alert voice. "Let us do what we can."

"Team Zeta!" Dawn called as the demons began to encroach upon their lawn. "Fire your weapons!"

Then she raised her own wand and grinned; rather pleased at getting to use her new wand for the first time in a battle. _"Fuego!"_ she shouted and the vampire at the front of the demon's line burst into flames.

"One down, thirty-four to go," she said between gritted teeth as she raised her wand again.

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Anya gripped her wand and peeked out through the curtains of her bedroom window at the approaching demons. Giles and ten girls were fighting in hand to hand combat while flaming arrows flew through the night and Buckbeak, carrying an arrow-shooting Jordan, swooped down to knock over several of the demons.

"This doesn't look good," Andrew said nervously from his post behind Anya.

"What's happening?" Rosa asked nervously from her spot next to her sisters Linda and Marie. Anya thought it was very odd that the three triplets were all potential slayers but she thought maybe it was just a wacky DNA thing.

"Oh, thirty-five no thirty – ooh, no! Twenty-eight! – demons and vampires are attacking," Anya informed them.

"We're going to die!" Ruriko squeaked out from her spot on the floor next to Aria as she covered her eyes with her hands.

"Yes, likely," Anya informed her matter-of-factly. "Quite honestly, that is the one thing I will never understand. Why do humans choose to fight when they know that death is inevitable?" she asked as she saw a vampire bite viciously into Alana Pitt's neck.

"So how come you're here? You could just go, right? Or is it 'cause of Remus?" Andrew asked her curiously.

Anya gave a small nod as she remembered a time four years ago. "Yes, I did once before."

"Before what?"

"Well, there was this other apocalypse this one time, and... well, I took off. But this time, I don't...I don't know. There's Remus and then there's also just," Anya shrugged; at a loss for words.

Andrew gave her a peculiar look. "Well...what's different?"

Anya kept watching the battle unfold outside but struggled to answer his question. "Well, I guess I was...kinda new to bein' around humans before. But now I've... seen a lot more, gotten to know people... seen what they're capable of, and," she sighed softly.

"I guess I just realized...how amazingly screwed-up they all are. I mean really, really screwed-up in a monumental fashion."

Andrew gave her a strange look and nodded. "Oh."

Throwing her arms up in annoyance, Anya continued. "And they have no purpose that unites them, so they just drift around, blundering through life until they die – which they, they know is coming, yet every single one of them is surprised when it happens to them."

She rolled her eyes. "They're incapable of thinking about what they want beyond the moment. They kill each other, which is clearly insane.

"And yet, here's the thing," she added in a quiet voice. "When it's something that really matters, they fight. I mean, they're lame morons for fighting, but they do. They never... never quit. So I guess I will keep fighting, too.

"That was kind of beautiful," Andrew sighed as Anya gave a nod. "You...you love humans."

"I do not!" Anya scoffed indignantly.

"Yes, you do. You loooove them," Andrew grinned while the five potentials with them snickered.

"Stop it! I don't love them! And I'll kill you if you tell anybody," she threatened as she gave all six of them a dirty look.

"I won't tell anybody. Won't get a chance to, anyway. We're probably going to die tonight."

Anya cocked her head to the side as she watched the battle outside; cringing as she saw Athena Wolfe, a potential from Oregon, get stabbed with a spear.

"No," Anya said in a hard, determined voice as she remembered all the goodies in the secret liquor cabinet she kept in her bedroom. "We won't.

"Girls," she said as she turned to them. "Any of you know what a Molotov cocktail is?"

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As Luna watched Caleb drink the intermixed blood of Becky Beeluv and Lisa Wolfe, she felt a wave of nausea threaten to rise as her body began shaking uncontrollably. She fell to her knees and pressed her forehead against the cool floor. This couldn't be happening – it _shouldn't_ be happening! But it was and she, Luna Gardiena Lovegood, could do nothing about it.

Righteous anger flared through her as Caleb took another sip and began mocking Xander and other members of Team Gamma. Those two girls he killed – as well as the other girls at the last battle – were her family. She couldn't describe it and assumed it must be some sort of intangible potential slayer bond but those girls _felt_ like family. Too many of them have been murdered by evil and now she felt a wave of motherly need to protect the remaining girls.

She watched as Caleb laughed outright in Xander's face. "You know, y'all think I'm a bad guy when in your cage you have a vampire and a werewolf. Makes ya think, don't it?"

"Remus is a human being with a little furry problem while Spike – though an ass – has a soul and is good!" Xander growled back; not noticing Spike's surprised look behind him and Remus gritting his teeth at Caleb.

"Little furry problem, huh?" Caleb chuckled. "Probably ain't so little when it's your problem." Focusing on his magical orb, Caleb muttered unheard words and Remus was suddenly out of the cage. He raised his wand but Caleb casually snapped it.

"NO! DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH MOONY!" Sirius screamed at the top of his lungs as he lunged against Team Beta's force field wall repeatedly.

"Ain't gonna hurt the lad, don't you worry Mr. Black," Caleb grinned. Then he closed his eyes and gripped Remus' neck.

"Now this might hurt a little," Caleb growled out in a deep, frightening voice. An image of a two-horned demon with red, glowing eyes superimposed itself over Caleb and entered Remus. The wizard let out a wailing cry of pain as he began shaking uncontrollably before Caleb used his glowing orb to thrust Remus back into Team Gamma's cage.

"Remus! Remus! Are you okay, man?" Xander asked as he crouched next to the shaking, screaming man.

"Merlin damn you, Caleb!" Sirius seethed in fury before he turned towards Team Gamma's cage. "Dammit, Xander! Get away from him! He's changing!" the wizard informed the one-eyed man.

"Wha—" Spike asked in shock as Spike pulled the girls, Amanda, Yelena, Christy, Aryll, and Ida, behind him.

Before their eyes Remus began shifting. Thick brown hair erupted across his body and his spine bowed as the crack of rearranging bones could be heard.

"Fight it, Remus!" Xander urged him.

A howl was Xander's only answer.

Licking his lips in satisfaction, Caleb grinned. "Now _this_ is what I call entertainment!"

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Dawn used her wand to guide the ice potions that she and Willow had made at the demon trying to swipe at Giles. The bottle exploded on impact and the seven foot demon slipped onto its back, giving Giles just enough time to decapitate it with his sword. She was still on the roof with her team but they were starting to run out of flaming arrows. They still had thirteen vamps left and three demons but had also lost Athena and Alana; with several girls severely wounded as well.

Her eyes bulged as she saw a vampire wearing a lame disco suit use a sword to stab Buckbeak, who had swooped in to knock back a Raminan demon. "No!" she shouted with her heart clenching tightly in her chest.

"Take that, you evil fashion victim, you!" she heard Anya's voice shout from below as a bottle shattered on the vampire's head and flames erupted across his shrieking body. Leaning over slightly, she saw Anya and her team throwing what appeared to be Molotov cocktails out the second story windows.

Wicked.

Dawn would be jealous, 'cept she did have magic. With a wide grin she raised her wand and directed another spell at the remaining baddies.

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"Dammit!" Spike muttered as Remus the werewolf leaped upwards. The vampire caught the werewolf in a tight vice as he gripped the creature around the waist and they began wrestling in the enclosed space.

"Woo-hoo, this deserves to be on pay-per-view!" Caleb grinned at them as he raised his wine glass to toast the event.

"Moony! Moony! Remus! Fight against it! There's no full moon; this shouldn't even be happening to you!" Sirius cried out in frustration as he pulled at his already disheveled hair.

Moony threw off Spike, who landed head-first against the hard floor, and snarled at the other six members of the cage.

"Try to knock him out, but try not to kill him," Xander ordered as he held up his sword.

"Even if he tries to kill us?" Amanda whimpered as she shrank her tall frame against the invisible wall.

"Then do what you need to," Xander replied glumly as Moony leapt into the air.

Most of the girls jumped out of the way but Moony knocked Aryll into the floor and bit savagely into her arm as he whipped her around. Grabbing her small sword she thrust it into his shoulder, just barely missing the werewolf's neck at the last minute. Moony howled in response and his teeth sunk into the girl's exposed neck.

Xander beat at the werewolf's back with a wooden staff that had once been in Aryll's hand before she got knocked down. Growling in response, Moony quickly turned to face his new attacker. Xander successfully blocked each of Moony's attempts to get closer but the cunning werewolf realized there was easier prey and leaped at Ida where his strong jaws snapped around her ankle like a bear trap. The blond screamed in agony as the werewolf tossed her against the wall before looking up for new prey.

Luckily, he never got his chance before Spike squeezed his arms around Moony's neck until the beast passed out.

And as Luna watched all of this she felt something deep within her tremble with rage. These girls were _hers_. She felt it within her bones. Hers to protect, hers to watch over. She touched that deep, primitive part of her and asked the gods for help. Help to protect her sisters.

Then warmth like a hot desert sun bled within her and the strength of a mountain lion stretched along her skin.

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Willow awoke and blinked her eyes groggily as she breathed in the cool night air. "What happened?" she asked.

"You passed out like me da after too many drinks," Skye said as she compared her father to Willow's experience. She drew her bow string and let an arrow fly. "Dawn said it was something magical," she added with a shrug.

"Magical," Willow gasped as she remembered the wards breaking down. "What's happened?"

"Dawn went down to help since she was missing hitting too many of the demons from being way up here and mostly everyone is fighting still," Venus informed her.

Willow stood up shakily and looked below, gasping as she did so. Many of the girls lay dead or injured and there were still eight vampires left fighting against Giles, Dawn, Jordan, Ivana, and Jade. Shaking with a dark fury she harnessed the power within her and narrowed her eyes at the remaining villains.  
_  
"Hestia, goddess of the hearth,  
I beseech thee to send your flames to earth.  
To only you I trust,  
To burn these vampires to dust."  
_  
Immediately each of the vampires burst into flame and Willow said a small prayer of thanks to the greek goddess.

Dawn looked up at her and grinned. "Good to have you awake, Willster!"

Willow smiled sadly at her back. She was glad to be awake as well but something – or someone – had purposely triggered the wards to backfire on her when she tried to strengthen them. Someone hadn't wanted her helping out tonight at all.

Now she needed to find out who that someone was.

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Faith gripped Sirius' shoulder as her friend watched Moony get rendered unconscious by Spike. She saw the look in his eyes and knew watching that had been painful – painful to see his friend kill a girl and maim another, and painful to know that tonight his friend may be killed in order to save the remaining members of Team Gamma.

**"A Kwanza Bovu!"** a powerfully deep, yet feminine, voice shook through the warehouse.

Everyone turned to look at the new voice, yet it wasn't a new face. Luna was standing, her body coiled and prepared to strike, as she stared at Caleb with glowing white eyes. A desert hot breeze traveled through the room and gently blew Luna's silver-blond waves around her stern face.

**"A Kwanza Bovu!"** she repeated in a deadly, protective voice. **"For too long you have murdered my daughters and sought out my sisters. For too long we have watched. For too long we have waited. But a new day rises and your day shall soon end!"**

Caleb stared at her in awe. "So my master was right. Didn't quite think we'd get an appearance just so soon." He grinned and an malevolent sparkle seemed to shine in his remaining black eye. "Lemme guess, you're here on account of me drinkin' the blood of your daughters and all that? I sure was hopin' you'd get the invitation."

Luna growled and an icy chill set over the room. **"No more,"** she spoke in a voice that bled power and demanded fear as she knelt and placed her hands over the floor. A tremor stole through the room and everyone fought to keep their balance. The floor began rising from Luna's cage and traveling towards Caleb, who gave it an apprehensive look. Without warning the floor burst upwards and a pillar of stone rose quickly to shatter the magical orb controlling their cages in Caleb's outstretched hand.

"Well, gosh darn it," Caleb said between gritted teeth as the walls of their prisons flickered and finally disappeared.

"Go!" Faith shouted as Sirius immediately put Moony into a body bind before the place exploded with activity against Caleb and the two dozen Bringers.

"Luna, Luna," Buffy whispered urgently as she touched the girl's cheek. After the spell the girl had fallen backwards and passed out. "Are you okay?"

Luna opened her eyes and they were once again that shade of pale, watery blue. "We're free?"

"Yes," Buffy answered her; a million questions on the tip of her tongue. "Do you still know where the scythe is?"

Luna blinked slowly and nodded as Buffy helped her to stand up. "Yes. I can feel it; it's pulsing with power. It isn't far – it is somewhere below the wine cellar."

"Good. Let's go," Buffy told her with a deadly gleam in her eye – she could not _wait_ to eviscerate Caleb.

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"I'm gonna take out your other eye, asshole," Faith grunted as she sliced her broadsword through the air. Caleb moved quickly but she still cut a thin line over his shoulder.

"Bitch," he snarled. "This was a new outfit." He punched her and Faith flew onto her back with a thud.

"Stupefy!" shouted Sirius and a red blast of light knocked Caleb off his feet.

Buffy and Luna raced passed them; likely on their way to the scythe. That meant Faith needed to keep Caleb distracted.

"Sorry, I bet you can find a new outfit at the Big, Tall, and Evil Store," Faith quipped as she landed a kick against Caleb as he attempted to get up.

"Or a Halloween shop. Maybe while you're there you can pick up something creepier than a preacher outfit," Xander cracked as he shot Caleb in the leg with an arrow.

"You think your petty weapons can stop me?" Caleb screeched in indignation as he snapped the arrow embedded in his leg. "Your twigs and sticks don't scare me!" Then, almost as if he remembered their original purpose for being there, he glanced around wildly. "Where's the Slayer?"

"Right here, Bub," Faith answered as she landed a punch against his cheek.

"Not you, I meant the _real_ slayer," he said snidely as he grabbed her jaw and gave her an amused look. "What, Faith? You thought you mattered? That you were a slayer like your idol Buffy? You will never be like her and will never matter – although its fun to see you try." With that final statement he threw Faith against the wall and began running out of the building.

"Faith? You alright?" Sirius asked her as he quickly administered a Pepper-Up potion to her.

"Yeah," she groaned as she devoured the contents of his bottle.

He saw the sad, vulnerable look in her eyes and laid a comforting hand on her bruised cheek. "You _are_ a slayer and you do matter," he whispered to her intensely.

Faith's brown eyes widened as she took in his words before she threw a sarcastic smile at him. "Stop gettin' all inspirational on me, Mad Dog. Tryin' to fight here," she snorted. "Now, let's go help Buffy."

They followed Caleb's path, along with Spike who had decided to make sure the Slayer and his Crescent was alright, and came outside just in time to see Buffy get thrown twenty feet against the wall of a building.

"Buffy!" Spike shouted as he increased his speed.

With her slayer hearing, Faith could hear Caleb speak to Luna as he grabbed the teenage witch by the throat. "My master wants a closer look at you. You should feel honored," he smiled eerily.

"As Spike would say, 'sod off, wanker'," she sneered bravely; her normally dreamy voice hardened by witnessing brutal deaths.

Caleb growled and, as it did with Remus, the image of a flame-eyed demon appeared over Caleb and rushed into Luna and the girl's screams echoed through the air.

"I'll kill you!" Spike declared as he took Caleb down in a football style tackle as Luna fell to the ground in a heap.

Buffy was unsteadily getting to her feet, staring at Luna's still body in sadness. Faith grabbed her arm. "C'mon B! Go get the slayer weapon; we'll hold him off."

Buffy's head turned and her hazel eyes caught her own. "No, _we'll_ go. We're both slayers and if something happens to one of us, then we need to make sure that the other one gets the weapon."

Faith felt a rush of emotion at Buffy's words; too much emotion to figure out at the moment what exactly she felt. "Alright."

Sirius threw the ice water potion at Caleb's feet after he shook off Spike. "You girls run! We got this!"

And so they ran.

Unfortunately, after ten minutes of fighting against Caleb, Sirius and Spike proved that they didn't 'have' much of anything besides broken bones and a bout of unconsciousness.

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"Alright, Luna said it was below the wine cellar," Buffy informed Faith as she kicked over a wine barrel.

"We thinkin' trap door a'la a creepy mansion? Think there's any fireplaces or candlesticks?" Faith asked with a grunt as she tossed several wine barrels against the wall.

"If only we were that lucky," Buffy hissed in pain as she pulled a muscle in her back that had already been injured from Caleb tossing her like a softball.

Eventually they tore their way through the cellar until Faith shouted victoriously. "Got it, B!" She opened up the trap door and slid downwards, and Buffy quickly followed.

Landing lightly on her feet, Buffy glanced around – and then gasped as her eyes found the same thing that Faith was focused on. There in the secret chamber was a large ancient rock with a gleaming scythe resting in it, like something out of King Arthur. The tip was pointed wood but the rest of it was metal. The blade glinted in the torchlight and was a jaw-dropping shade of blood red.

But above all, Buffy was astounded by how much the weapon screamed, _'MINE.'_

Both she and Faith walked up to it and glanced at it before making eye contact.

"So," Faith nodded as she bit her lip and put her trembling hands – hands that were begging to touch the weapon because that was the exact same way that Buffy felt – into her tight jean pockets. "Guess we found your weapon."

Cocking her head to the side, Buffy looked at Faith - _really_ looked at her. The girl had only been back in Buffy's life for not even two weeks but already their relationship had changed; had mellowed a bit. They were both so different but as Buffy watched how Faith's eyes roved over the scythe like a long-long friend and how she ached to touch it, she realized at that moment how alike they were as well.

They were both slayers – together.

"How about we both pick it up at the same time?" Buffy offered with a small smile.

Faith's lips curved into surprised smile that reached her eyes. "That sounds good, B."

"Aw, ain't this cute," drawled a familiar voice that made Buffy crave blood and violence. "Y'all are getting along. I feel a Full House moment coming on."

"You watch Full House?" Faith asked with a raised brow.

"A TV show showcasing the strength of three men and good, conservative values? Darn tootin', lil' lady," he grinned.

"Now, I see you found that little toy – too bad you'll never get it out of that rock," he chuckled scornfully.

Buffy caught Faith's eye and nodded. They knew the truth – could feel it in their bones. This weapon was theirs for the taking.

Standing next to each other they both gripped the smooth metal handle of the scythe and pulled it up easily, like a knife from a hot stick of butter. Power flared between the two; connecting them. As they each gasped and locked eyes Buffy saw Faith's past reel before her like a movie; she saw the physical and sexual abuse, the poverty, the death of her watcher, and the remorse she felt in prison. Likewise, Faith saw a vision of Buffy's life – the parents who argued because their daughter was a freak, the weight of the world on her shoulders, the constant responsibility of saving the world, her friends, and family, the pain of losing the men she loved, and the heart-breaking feeling of being ripped out of heaven.

They caught their breath as the moment ended; speechless at getting a true glimpse into the other girl's life. Then, as one, they turned towards a very frightened Caleb and raised their weapon.

"You—you two don't expect to both take me on with just one little weapon on ya?" Caleb said nervously as he noticeably backed away. "Now, why don't you hand it to me before one of y'all gets hurt?"

"Gee, I dunno B. Why don't you give it a twirl?" Faith said with an anticipatory grin as she released the weapon.

Buffy gave it a dutiful twirl. "Ooh, look. No hurtage. Faith?"

Faith caught the weapon as Buffy tossed it and it whistled as she moved it through the air. "Hey, will ya look at that!" she grinned at Caleb. "I'm all hurt free too!"

Caleb growled but there still was a sense of fear around him. "What? You think some little toy can hurt me? I am the chosen one of the First Evil – you stand no match against me, bitches!"

"I'm getting real tired of that word," Faith hissed with narrowed eyes.

"Which one? 'Chosen one' or 'bitches'?" Buffy asked brightly as she gave Caleb a deadly smile.

"Both, actually," Faith grinned. "You ready for this B?" she asked as she extended the scythe towards her.

Buffy smirked. "Oh, I'm ready. But why don't you have some fun first?"

"Gladly," Faith said as she launched herself towards Caleb. Her body was a blur of motion as the scythe screamed through the silent night and tried to find its intended target. However, Caleb was fast.

"Silly little girl, trying to make a difference," Caleb grunted. "I see you," he sneered. "You are nothing."

Faith purposely fell to her feet and slid between his legs in order to miss an attempted bear hug. Caleb pivoted and Faith smiled wickedly as she drove the sharp wooden end of the scythe into Caleb's remaining eye. "Don't think you're seein' nothin', dude."

Caleb howled in pain and fell backwards as Faith round-house kicked him. "You dirty _whore_!" he boomed with such an amount of hatred that it would have been scary – if he hadn't been rolling around on the floor rubbing his newly bleeding eye.

"Nice," Buffy admired with a smile.

Faith tossed the scythe in the air. "Your turn, big sis!"

Buffy gave her a mock glare. "Oh sure, _I_ get to finish him off now that he can't even see to fight me! This is sooo anticlimactic," she griped lightly.

"Oh don't worry, Slayer," Caleb grimaced as he stood. "I'm more than happy to kill you."

"And if I had a nickel for every time they told me that…" Buffy grinned as she began attacking.

For being a blind guy, Caleb still moved quickly and he – while super gross – actually sniffed the air to figure out where she was. A fist flew towards her face and she blocked it with the arm of the scythe while simultaneously performing a front kick that pushed him back. He grunted but stayed upright as he faked a punch to her right but then delivered an uppercut to her left. Buffy wobbled backwards and ducked his advancing fist as she pivoted to the right and slashed the scythe through the air.

Another air-splitting roar of pain split the air as Caleb's right hand fell onto the floor. "WHORE!" he yelled in clear agony.

"Geez, you got any other words?" Buffy asked disdainfully as he grabbed his bleeding stump.

"Seriously. Maybe we should run to the closest abandoned store and pick this dude up a dictionary," Faith drawled from her post against the giant rock.

"Well, I'm more of a doer than a talker," he growled as he swooped in to pick up Buffy and toss her; the diminutive blond tumbling across the floor.

Faith flew towards the demonic man and performed a jump kick but he grabbed her ankle and swung her against the wall. Then he leaned over Buffy and smiled as he prepared himself to deliver the final blow.

"You might be a doer but I reckon you'll have problems performing when I'm done with ya," Buffy grunted as she raised the scythe upwards, beginning at Caleb's crotch, and jumped up to slice him completely in half. She winced as the split body tumbled to the floor with a thick, sticky sound.

Faith coughed as she stood up and walked towards Buffy in order to inspect the creature that once was Caleb.

"Nice one," she commented with a small nod.

"The kill or the quip? 'Cause, ya know, both are important to me," Buffy smiled cheekily; relieved that this final weight was off her shoulders.

Chuckling softly, Faith tossed a lit lighter onto the man and grinned as his clothes caught fire. "Gotta give you props for both, although the semi-castration rocked my socks."

Buffy grinned at her sister slayer and wrapped an arm around her shoulders as they walked towards the exit; a blazing fire left in their wake. "That was appropriate, wasn't it? But I gotta say, I found your eye gouging to be quite poetic."

"I know, right? He took Xander's eye and then he was saying that bullshit 'bout him seein' me and bam! Blind man walkin'!" Faith grinned.

Buffy laughed out loud and Faith joined her; both feeling a sense of euphoria from having the slayer scythe in the possession, killing the demon that had murdered their girls, and finally feeling at peace with one another.

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A/N:

Thank you so much for reading and reviewing. It makes me deliriously happy that people enjoy this story so much and I love getting feedback on what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong – Thank you :)

Hope the following readers enjoyed their shout outs! :)  
Rosalindamarie AKA Rose, Linda, and Marie; Allen Pitt aka Alana Pitt (nice, huh? Heehee), Athenwolfe aka Athena Wolfe, Skyfather aka Skye, Venus, Aryll, and Ida.

**Luna's middle name… Know what it means? Well if so leave a review and I'll give you a cookie! And if you get it right (at least, using the definition that I'm using) then, if I haven't yet, I will be sure to kill you in a grisly manner if I can turn your name into a potential! ;) Or, if you want, I'll keep you alive! (although that is far more boring heehee!)

**THANK YOU TO BUFFY for their transcript of S7 Ep 21, 'End of Days' where I used some of Anya and Andrew's dialogue.

**A Kwanza Bovu- First Bad/ First Evil- .com/english/to-swahili/


	75. The Grandmother & the Emo Boy

The Grandmother & the Emo Boy

A/N:

What Does Luna's Middle Name Mean? Contest—For my little contest only ONE reader responded (le sigh) and while she was right on some accounts, we did not work from the same definition (which is provided at the end of this chapter). However, since she did respond she is a new potential and will die a grisly death. In the words of DireSquirrel (via a review to this story) 'Yay Death!' :) *snickers*

**Thank you to kissdoogie for issuing a rec! 'Tis appreciated greatly!

**Hope Christy , christytrekkie , DarkLady , LeilaR , and Luckie enjoy their shout-outs!

**Thank you to Hawklan for liking this fic enough to archive it at Fic Site :)

* * *

Willow bit her lip in frustration as she tried to pour healing energy into Luna's comatose form, but there was something dark inside the girl; something evil and it fought against Willow's efforts. Being in such close contact with it scared Willow – already she could feel the tips of her hair turning black – and it reminded her of the time the First Evil went into her body while she attempted a location spell.

Which, sadly, would make sense, on account of the First Evil apparently doing the same thing to Luna last night at the vineyard.

"Will, how is she?" Buffy asked after silently entering Luna's bedroom; the scythe gently whistling as it swung slightly in her hands.

"The same," Willow replied glumly from the chair next to the bed. "None of Anya's healing potions or any of my magic is working on the girl."

"It's been over half a day – it's almost noon. What else can we do to help?" Buffy asked as she sat at the foot of Luna's bed.

"I dunno, Buff. There's something in her – something bad. I can feel it eating away at her. I'm afraid that if we can't get it out…" Willow trailed off with a shrug.

"Then the girl responsible for saving us and finding this weapon will die," Buffy finished in a melancholy tone as she stared down at her gleaming silver and red scythe.

An uncomfortable silence followed Buffy's statement as the two women simply stared at Luna – as if to will her to awaken.

"I've been so busy with Luna since everyone arrived, how's our army looking?" Willow asked.

Buffy sighed. "We may have won the battle last night but it didn't come without a cost. Lisa, Aryll, Becky, Alanna, and Athena all died. Faith and buried them this morning and we'll hold a memorial tonight, once everyone's had some rest."

"Injured?"

"Ida was bitten by Remus while he was wolfed out but she's fine otherwise. Unfortunately, she will have hair of the dog three nights out of the month but I think she'll adjust – she's a no-nonsense kind of girl. Caridad, Amanda, and Chao-Ahn all got injured fighting against the Bringers but Anya's potions have fixed them up for the most part. The girls who got injured here, Andie, Merlyna, Sofia, Ivana, and Nickole are all okay as well."

"And the non-potentials?" Willow asked worriedly.

Buffy smiled and squeezed her hand. "Sirius is fine, Will. Half a dozen broken bones but those Wizarding healing potions are like magic. Which," she frowned slightly before giving Willow a bright smile, "I guess they are."

Willow nodded, even though Sirius was not the first person she thought of. "And Kennedy? Oh, and Remus, of course?"

Buffy's eyes narrowed slightly as she gave Willow a curious look. "Kennedy took a knife to the leg but it's fine now. And Remus, well," Buffy sighed and shrugged. "He's locked himself up in his room and won't even let Anya come in. Physically he's okay but mentally… Well, let's just say he's not doing too good after his wolfy side killed Aryll and infected Ida."

"It's not his fault!" Willow said automatically, her mind drifting back to Oz.

"Of course not, Will," Buffy said gently. "I know that. It just… sucks, ya know?"

Willow nodded. She knew what it was like to have people think her boyfriend was a cold-blooded 'jelly donut'. "Poor Remus. Poor Anya."

"By the way, Sirius is still all loopy from the fun time magical meds but he's been asking for you. I know you must be burnt out from trying to heal Luna so if you want a break I'll watch over her," Buffy offered.

Willow leaned back and felt her eyes widen. Why did the thought of talking to Sirius feel her with dread? Willow was utterly confused about her feelings towards her ex-boyfriend right now and—

Wow. She just really thought it. 'Ex-boyfriend.' Hers. Her _ex-boyfriend_ was _Sirius_.

Good goddess, that thought knocked the wind out of her. But she supposed it was for the best – Sirius clearly didn't want to be in a real committed relationship if he couldn't truly share himself with her, plus there was the age difference…and now maybe she could finally explore her feelings for Kennedy.

Whoa. Willow bit her lip. Where were these thoughts about Kennedy coming from? They were becoming increasingly persistent ever since the fight with Sirius. Sure, the girl was hot and charming and smart and 'clicked' with Willow but… It felt so new. And… wrong?

Willow felt a flash of warmth spread through her body at that random thought. No, no. Her feelings for Kennedy weren't wrong. Besides, Kennedy was the one person in Willow's life that had never let her down – she really was someone Willow could see loving someday.

"Wi-ill," Buffy sing-songed as she snapped her fingers. "You alright in there?"

"Um, y-yeah," Willow stammered. "You see, Buff, Sirius and I broke up," she said in a small voice as she prayed that her best friend wouldn't assault her for information.

"What? When?" Buffy screeched as she jumped up and put her hands on her hips.

"Um, four days ago." Willow snorted. "Guess it was like a bad April Fool's Joke since it happened on the April first."

"Willow," Buffy sighed sadly as she sank back onto the bed. Biting her lower lip, she looked pensive for a moment before shrugging at Willow.. "Well, if it was a bad joke, then make up! I mean, I can't imagine you two not together."

Willow looked away and shook her head. "No, I meant our relationship was like a bad April Fool's Joke, Buff. Listen, we just weren't meant to be."

Buffy's face was scrunched in confusion as she analyzed that statement. "Not meant to be? What did he do? 'Cause I – and everyone else in this house – always thought of you two as the 'Golden Couple' and definitely the most likely to get married someday."

"What?" Willow asked in alarm at the word 'marriage' – even as a traitorous flicker of warmth flowered in her chest. "Naw, no," she shook her head.

"He do something bad?" Buffy asked intensely and for a moment Willow realized that her best friend was a Slayer. By the look on her face, Buffy Summers the Vampire Slayer was likely remembering her shovel speech to Sirius Black.

Willow swallowed nervously from the intensity of her best friend. "Yes and no. He did something bad but it was better that I found out sooner rather than later, ya know?"

"No, I don't know," Buffy said with a frown. "What are you saying?"

But before Willow could go on with more of this torment, a sharp knock sounded on the door.

"Buffy? Willow? We have company," Dawn informed them.

* * *

Buffy and Willow followed Dawn down the stairs where they saw a tall woman with wavy silver-blond hair that reached past her waist wearing a flowing silver gown embroidered with flowers and leaves. Behind her were four teenage girls of varying sizes and hair colors. Buffy frowned as she wondered who this strange woman was – and then frowned even more when she realized the woman resembled the old lady murdered in the cemetery.

She was a Guardian.

The woman gazed up into Buffy's eyes and smiled such a brilliant smile that Buffy actually felt weak in the knees and had to grasp the railing to keep from falling. The skin around her eyes tightened into a set of crow's feet and her ice blue eyes looked upon Buffy in a loving fashion. Everything about this woman screamed 'home' and 'love' and 'mother'. For a moment Buffy realized just how much she missed her mom right now – her mother, her mommy, her own guardian for many years – and had to blink back sudden tears.

"Buffy Anne Summers," the woman smiled and opened up her arms as Buffy reached the landing. "You've made me so very proud."

Buffy knew in the back of her head that what she was doing must look crazy but she didn't care. Immediately she flung herself into the woman's arms and allowed herself to be held for a long moment, reveling in the way the woman ran her fingers lightly through Buffy's hair in a motherly fashion.

She released Buffy and held her at arms length; her eyes carefully inspecting her. "You've grown up into a beautiful young woman," she finally said with a warm gallon of pride in her tone.

"You know me?" Buffy asked in a small, surprised voice.

"Know you?" The woman laughed softly and her laughter was throaty and reverberated a sense of warmth that subconsciously brought a smile to Buffy's face. "My sisters and I have been watching you for a long time. It was foretold that you would bring about change."

"Yo, who's the old chick?" Faith interrupted as she entered the living room and leaned against the wall. "'Cause we already got a lot of people and if she can't fight you better tell her to steal a car and get the heck outta Dodge."

The woman laughed softly and turned to Faith. "Faith Marie Lehane," she whispered. "It is so good to see you up close," she smiled.

Faith stiffened and her back subconsciously pressed against the wall. "How do you know who I am?" she asked suspiciously with narrowed eyes.

The woman cocked her head and laughed softly again, like she knew a secret. "Look at me Faith, what do you feel? You know me as surely as you knew the scythe was made for you."

Faith's mouth formed a perfect 'O'. "You're a Guardian," she gasped; her dark coffee eyes darkening in surprise and wonder.

"Yes, my child. We have been watching you for a long time and my sisters and I were so proud of your maturity these past few years."

Faith walked up slowly towards the Guardian as she took in every detail of the woman. "I'm not like Buffy – I don't hug," she told her in a guarded voice as she crossed her arms.

The Guardian laughed again. "Oh, I know dear," she confirmed. "Although you should try it someday," she added with a raised brow and a grin.

Then she gestured towards the four teenagers. "These girls were traveling together and found me along the road; perhaps they were drawn to me or me to them, I am not sure. But they are potentials. This is Christy, Lanni, Karen, and Leila."

They all greeted each other and Dawn, the hostess with the mostess, quickly offered to show the girls to their rooms.

Once they were gone, the Guardian turned back to Buffy, Faith, and Willow. "Now that we have completed our introductions, I need to see my granddaughter."

"Your granddaughter?" Willow asked in a puzzled voice.

The Guardian smiled. "I see that I neglected to give my true name – such small things slip out of the minds of the elderly," she said in an apologetic tone. "I am Eliane Irene Gardiena, Luna's maternal grandmother."

"Whoa. You mean Luna has a Guardian for a grandma?" Faith asked in surprise. "Wicked. No wonder Crescent is so cool."

Eliane's eyebrow rose in confusion. "You call me granddaughter Croissant?"

Buffy and Willow snickered while Faith gestured wildly with her hands as she struggled to find the right words to appease the youngest potential's grandmother. "Oh! No, no. Crescent, like a moon phase, ya know?" she said nervously; surprisingly finding herself caring about what this woman thought of her.

Eliane leaned close to Faith and whispered conspiratorially. "That was a joke, dear," she grinned.

"Oh!" Faith's eyes widened as she began to laugh. "Damn – I mean darn! – you really are related to Luna."

"Yes, will you please take me to her?" Eliane said with a bemused smile.

"Of course," Willow said. As they walked up the stairs Willow filled Eliane in on all the details of Luna's illness.

"Ah yes, I know that the First possessed her. I imagine A Kwanza Bovu was quite angry with me interfering and wanted revenge," she mused.

"A Kwanza Bovu? That's what Luna said when she was possessed," Buffy said in surprise.

"A Kwanza Bovu is an ancient name for the First Evil that we Guardians gave it long ago, back when the Shadow Men created the first slayer. Today I used my connection to Luna in order to grant her the power necessary towards freeing you all and saving my daughters," Eliane explained.

"Wait," Faith interrupted. "B. told me about these Shadow Men dudes. But your people were there too?"

"Yes," Eliane replied darkly as they walked. "The Shadow Men were the shaman at my ancestor's village. When they stole a daughter from the tribe to transform into the slayer, her mothers were furious—"

"Mothers?" Willow asked, wondering idly if it was a lesbian village of some sort.

Eliane gave the witch a kind smile. "Back then they really did live by the motto of 'it takes a village to raise a child.' Sineya, the First Slayer, was beloved by all of the women and they swore from that day on that their daughter and future daughters would not be abused for their power as the Shadow Men wished. Using powerful message they asked for a blessing from Gaia herself to be granted the power necessary to help the slayers."

"Wait, so why is it Giles never heard of you guys?" Buffy asked in confusion.

Giving her a small shrug, Eliane smiled. "They did not know we existed. You see, over time the Shadow Men transformed into the Watchers, and the Watchers watched the Slayers, and we watched the Watchers."

She gave the girls a small smile as they approached Luna's door. "I'm afraid that we have not always been there as we would have liked for each of our girls. After my ancestors created the scythe long ago it was mandated to us that we were not allowed to interfere directly with the slayers until the final days."

Buffy made a face. "Lemme guess, these are the final days?"

Eliane gave her a soft kiss on the forehead. "So some say."

Willow opened the door and gestured towards Luna, who had Spike by her side reading a book, titled _'Snizzlewhiffles and the Ministry Conspiracy',_ out loud. Spike jumped up quickly at their entrance and sniffed the air. "You're more than human," he stated with a curious look at the Guardian.

"And you're more than a vampire," Eliane spoke in a voice that indicated her amusement with Spike's declaration as well as the seriousness of her words.

Spike looked startled at her response and immediately straightened his spine.

"So you are my granddaughter's dear friend, Spike the Vampire?" When Spike shot Buffy a confused look, the slayer nodded and Eliane continued to explain. "I watch her dreams occasionally – she dreams of you often. Your gift of friendship has made her very happy."

"You're Crescent's grandmum?" Spike said in an awed voice once he realized she was telling the truth. "She said you disappeared long ago."

"Yes," Eliane gave Luna a sad look. "My dearest daughter was murdered by a demon – you see, the First has been trying to wipe out our line for years and now there are only two of us left."

"Who's the other one?" Willow asked her softly.

Eliane chuckled softly. "I heard my granddaughter was brought here because Bringers attempted to kill her outside Hogwarts, correct?"

"Yes," Buffy confirmed. "We wanted to make sure all the potential slayers were in one spot."

"But she is not a potential slayer," Eliane said in a quiet voice as she sat down at Luna's bedside and brushed her hair behind her ear; not even bothering to glance at the shocked faces of the two slayers, the witch, and the vampire.

"Then what is she….Oh my goddess," Willow gasped at the realization.

"Wait, so Luna is a _Guardian_?" Buffy asked in astonishment as she met the wide eyes of Faith, Spike, and Willow.

"The first daughter born to a Guardian will inherit all the powers associated with being a Guardian," Eliane informed them. "My first daughter was Luna's mother and Luna is an only child. She is the Last Guardian."

"Guess that 'splains why Crescent had all those wacky dreams about the scythe," Spike commented.

"And never really liked fighting," Faith added.

"No," Eliane smiled. "Guardians are made for nurturing but not for direct combat. Although," she said in a harder voice, "we do what's necessary when needed."

Eliane rest her palms on either side of Luna's head and immediately gasped. "A Kwanza Bovu – I can feel it inside her. It wants to learn the secrets of the Guardians and use it against the slayers."

"Can you fight it?" Spike asked as he sat at the foot of Luna's bed and rested his hand on her foot.

"Yes," Eliane answered after a pregnant pause. "But it will be my final act as a Guardian." The woman did not seemed surprised by the turn of events or afraid by the self-declaration of imminent death.

"Please," she said to Spike as she focused her watery blue eyes – so similar to Luna's – on him. "Take care of my granddaughter. I have seen your future and it is a glorious one – but I ask you this small favor, William. She will be in need of a Champion someday, and it will be you."

Spike looked dumbfounded – both by her request and her praise. "Of course," he answered without hesitation.

"So, um, what now?" Willow asked nervously.

Eliane smiled as she gave Luna a soft look. "Now I fight for the life and soul of my granddaughter. If I succeed then she will need my life's energy to live – and in turn will be granted full access to her Guardian powers. If I don't succeed… Well, let us not think on that."

Then Eliane laid a hand on each side of Luna's temple, closed her eyes, and began her silent battle.

* * *

Sirius groaned from his spot in the den, which was now converted to a make-shift hospital complete with a total of ten beds. In each of the nine other beds were the various potential slayers who had been injured severely the previous night. They, like him, were all taking it easy while the wizarding healing supplies healed their knife wounds, broken bones, and other various injuries.

He had been injured during the fight against Caleb with Spike. It frustrated him that magic was no substitute for brute fighting strength when it came to certain battles and last night had definitely proved that if his wand got knocked out of his hand he was fairly useless. However, he was happy that at least his broken bones were healed and the pain potion Anya made him drink was finally starting to wear off so he could think properly again.

And all he could bloody think of was Willow.

Last night had been close – far too close – for all of them. When his skull had cracked against the wooden wall of the winery, thanks to Caleb, the only thing Sirius could think of was how his last moment with Willow had been an argument. At this point he was still confused on exactly whose fault the argument was – although he did accept that he should have been more willing to open up to her about his darker thoughts – but essentially it didn't matter. Sirius just couldn't bear not being with Willow, especially with the state of apocalyptic affairs in Sunnydale, and he wanted to make up with her.

If only she would bloody come down and visit him.

He had seen almost everyone so far and everyone said that Willow was trying to heal Luna. Which, of course, he knew was important. Unfortunately, patience has never been his strong suit.

Then, on top of this, he was also worried about Moony. Anya had very curtly told him earlier that his 'stupid werewolf friend is too busy mentally flogging himself to visit you or even talk to me'. Not that Sirius was surprised. In all his years as a werewolf – which was almost his entire life – Remus had always been afraid of hurting someone but never had.

And now he had killed a young girl and turned another into a werewolf.

Sirius let out a long, exasperated sigh. Remus was a natural 'emo boy' – Dawn's words, not his – and this business was going to make things worse. Somehow he needed to talk to his friend – to make him listen to reason and realize that he was not at fault for the First Evil bringing out his beast.

With that determined thought, Sirius unsteadily got out of his bed – a bit more affected by the pain potion than he realized – and headed to find Remus.

Deciding that Moony probably had not eaten yet, Sirius first made his way through a group of teenage girls to snatch some food from the kitchen. While he was there he was surprised to see a large group of hyper girls, and some new faces as well.

"Hey, Sirius! How's your legs?" Vi asked him kindly before biting into an apple.

"Good, good. Potion healed them up. Um, what's going on with everyone?" he asked as he gestured towards fifteen other girls.

Vi gave him a wide smile. "Sharing war stories, duh," she informed him as if he were an idiot.

Sirius turned to listen to the girls; interested to hear what they would be saying.

"No, dawg, for real. I think the best kill of the night had to go Christy when she got thrown on her back, tossed her liquid ice potion, and when the eyeless freak slipped and fell on top of her, he fell right on top of her knife!" Rona declared; her eyes tearing from an immense amount of laughter.

As everyone else laughed, a new girl with soft red curls that looked around Harry's age frowned and raised her hand. "Huh? My name's Christy."

Everyone glanced at her and a tall girl with her jet-black hair pulled up into a ponytail grinned. "Cool. My name's Christy too."

"Wait, but how can we tell you two apart when we're talking to ya?" Juliet, Luna's roommate, asked.

"Well, we could just call them by their hair color. Like, Black Christy and Red Christy," Chloe suggested.

Christy with the black hair, who also happened to be bi-racial, and Rona glared at Chloe. "I know you didn't just suggest to call her Black Christy?" Rona rolled her eyes in a tired way; the kind that only a black girl surrounded by mostly white girls can do.

"Oh! Oops. Never mind," Chloe said in a small voice as she realized her faux pas.

"I know!" Amanda said brightly from her place sitting on the kitchen counter. "Okay Christies, answer this: Star Trek of Star Wars."

"Star Trek!" the new, redheaded Christy answered immediately.

The other Christy shrugged. "Um, my dad kinda looks like Lando… so Star Wars?"

"Great! So you," Amanda pointed the black-haired Christy, "will be Christy Star Wars and you," she pointed towards the new girl, "will be Christy Trekkie."

"Cool!" grinned the younger girl while the other Christy just let out a snort of laughter as she gave Rona an amused look.

Sirius smiled to himself as he left the room with a plate of sandwiches – he was relieved to see the girls in such high spirits. They had all performed incredibly well last night so they did have a lot to be proud of, after all.

Eventually, after managing to maneuver around the crowds of teenage girls in the house, Sirius made it to Remus' bedroom door.

"Moony," he called out as he knocked at the door. "It's me. Open up."

Silence met his request and Sirius frowned. Yes, he understood that Moony would be feeling anti-social but that was exactly why he needed to talk to Sirius!

"Moony, c'mon!" he cajoled. "Let me in. I've got turkey and artichoke sandwiches, you're favorite," he sing-songed.

"Not opening up for you either?" Anya stated as Sirius jumped up in surprise at her sudden appearance behind him.

"No," he answered.

"I think he locked the door. I tried to do that door opening spell but magic is a lot harder to learn after a thousand years of being a demon," Anya informed with a frown as she leaned against the wall.

"Ah," he sighed. "Well, then, I guess I should just invade his privacy and force open my best friend's door?"

"Duh!" Anya said scornfully and Sirius grinned as he followed her request.

The door swung open slowly and revealed a darkened room with drawn blinds. The bed was carefully made and everything that used the give the room a personal touch – a school picture of them all in a frame, a Quidditch pennant, and dozens of books and scholarly magazines – were gone.

"Sirius, move out of my way," Anya said as she pushed him to the side. "Dammit Remus you are being so stu—"

Anya's jaw dropped as she took in the sight around her. "Where is he?" she asked in a stunned voice.

"I don't know," Sirius answered honestly. Then he spotted a roll of parchment on the bed and pointed at it. "Though that might tell us something."

Gritting her teeth, Anya released a noise of frustration as she unfurled the scroll and held it so both she and Sirius could read it.

There, in Remus' loopy scrawl, read:  
_  
Everyone,_

The guilt of my actions last night is suffocating and I know that as long as the First Evil can control me I am no good to you here. I know no apology will be good enough for taking Aryll's short-lived life and cursing poor Ida to a life of torment – but I am sorry. Deeply sorry.

You all have a special place in my heart for allowed such a cursed creature to live among you. For this I thank you.

Rupert—Thank you so very much for the job and treating me like a normal human being. I only wish I could have not jeopardized the lives of your charges.

Buffy—You are a great leader; do not doubt yourself. I have faith in you abilities to end this once and for all.

Xander—I am unsure if there are words to express how thankful I am for you introducing me to Twinkies and South Park. No, joking aside, I thank you for accepting and supporting … well, you know what I mean. Thank you.

Dawn—You are a superb student and with your raw talent and bright mind I know you will someday become an amazing witch. I am sure Dumbledore will allow you at Hogwarts and I cannot wait to hear of your accomplishments there.

Luna—You've been a joy to teach this year, as well as in your Second Year. Never have I met a more unique young woman and I trust we can expect great things from you.

Willow—Thanks to you, my dear friend Padfoot is truly back. I am eternally grateful for what you have done. Please take care of him while I am gone.

Padfoot—Please do not be angry at me for leaving and don't try to find me – I know you. But please don't – you are all safer without me. I am thankful that we got to spend so much time living here together after so many years apart. I trust we shall see each other again.

Anya—You have made me reconsider so much about my life and my ideas… You are truly the most unique, beautiful, kind, and humorous woman I have ever – and will ever – meet. Thanks to you, my few months here have been happier than you probably know. I know you will likely hate me for leaving but I don't think I would survive it if I hurt you too… I hope that someday I will be able to see you again.

I will miss you all.

—RJL

Sirius sighed in frustration and shook his head. "Dammit, Moony." He snuck a look at Anya, afraid of her likely angry reaction. After all, with Anya he had come to expect fireworks when the situation called for it – and this situation definitely called for it.

So that was why Sirius was incredibly surprised and saddened to see the parchment paper slip through Anya's deadened fingers to crumple onto the floor while silent tears streamed down her cheeks as she wheezed in shaky breaths.

* * *

A/N:

SOOOOOOOO…. DID ANYONE GUESS THAT LUNA WAS A GUARDIAN? When I wrote the first chapter featuring her she was just going to become a potential slayer. But while watching S7 I realized how much that Guardian looked like her and BAM! Inspiration :) MWAHAHAHA and so many of you thought I was gonna make Dru her grandmum since I mentioned she disappeared! Very excellent observations but our lil Luna is a Guardian ;D

**Anyways, I'm real curious if anyone picked up on my many hints, so please leave a review and let me know if it was obvious or a complete surprise, and if you like this turn of events. THANKS!**

*Note on my Guardians & how they differ from canon* Mine are not immortal (the Guardian in S7 alluded to her being extremely old) but do live for a long time – like wizards! Also, mine know everything about their 'daughters' – the slayer(s) and potentials. The Guardian at the end of S7 did not know Buffy's name but that was just a cheap crack at Buffy's silly name and that someone had actually not heard of her. Therefore, I saw fit to change it.

**Eliane= 'sun' in French; as in the opposite of Luna's name, which means moon; for Luna's role as a Guardian comes about in the dusk of the world as the great apocalypse approaches. (ha, yeah, I really do think this hard bout this stuff!)

**Irene= 'peace' in French

****Gardiena= 'Guardian' in French!**

*About Luna*: As I showed with her uncle Lovegood that that side of the family is quite German, I made her mother's side French. Cuz to me, Luna seems a good blend of German sensibility with French romanticism :)

* She knew what it was like to have people think her boyfriend was a cold-blooded 'jelly donut'- S3 E4 "Beauty and the Beasts"


	76. Something Ripper This Way Comes

Something Ripper This Way Comes

A warm round of applause to tactless and savingjuliet for issuing a rec on Twisting the Hellmouth; and a special bit of thanks to savingjuliet who always leaves wonderful reviews for each chapter on ffnet :D

And as always, thank you to all the reviewers; I adore you.

Oh, and this chapter was inspired by watching S7 and realized that while Buffy always talked about burying bodies, they never had a freakin' memorial service! And sorry, but as someone who worked with teens, it's highly important that they have an outlet for tragedies. So, yeah…

* * *

Pink streaked the sky as the sun began its darkening descent over the horizon. The backyard of the Summers home was awash in soft indirect sunlight and a cool breeze that carried a hint of ocean lightly ruffled the hair of everyone present. A stage, constructed by Sirius' magic, was draped with beautiful pink, lilac, and white flowers that Willow and Kennedy had grown. Sitting in front of the stage were almost fifty chairs that featured all the potentials and the 'Scoobies'. As Rupert Giles stared out at them from the podium, his heart constricted at their forlorn faces; these children had seen far too much in such a short time. As the only Watcher here he felt entirely responsible for their welfare – and it pained him that he was about as useful as chopsticks at a burger joint.

"Good evening. Today we are here to celebrate and recognize the sacrifices of those who we lost in last night's battle," Giles began in a strong voice that carried over the backyard.

Giles noticed that a fraction of the girls – Amanda, Ida, Chloe, and the younger girls – were huddled together and attempting to wipe away their silent tears.

"As you all know, our world is under attack from the First Evil who aspires to take control and ruin civilization as we know it. You all have quickly come to know the costs of protecting ourselves and billions of others. You know that evil will not be defeated easily and that it intends to take each and every one of us."

In the front row, Buffy's eyes darkened and a strength shown through them that made Giles more proud than she probably knew – his girl had grown up into truly a great warrior. Xander, seated next to her, clenched Anya's hand as he whispered likely words of comfort to his ex-fiancé sitting on the other side of him. He was doubly proud of Xander for growing up from the awkward teenager into a responsible young man who was more integral to their unit than he realized. Anya, as well, had come a long way from her days of vengeance and even though she was far older than him, he had come to look upon her like a daughter as well – in fact, he felt a swell of fatherly anger towards Remus for disappearing on her this afternoon, even if it probably had been the best thing to do.

On the other side of Buffy, he was surprised to see Faith's eyes sparkle with unshed tears as she leaned in close to the other slayer. While he had heard from Willow the changes in the girl's demeanor and had observed her desire for repentance, he was still surprised at how quickly Faith had integrated herself into the household and tried to be a role model for the potentials. He was incredibly proud of her; especially because the way she had been treated during Buffy's senior year had always been a source of guilt for him. In fact, Faith's experience was just one of the reasons why Giles wasn't terribly saddened by the destruction of the Watcher's Council – he wished no one had lost their life, yes, but he couldn't help but hope that (if they survived) someday Giles could start it over.

Sirius sat next to Faith and Dawn was on the wizard's other side. Sirius looked lost and Giles wasn't sure if it was due to his Remus' disappearance or the apparent tension between him and Willow. Dawn's face was sober as she stared straight ahead, but Giles saw that one hand held Sirius' in a tight grip and the other held Spike's in a tight vise as well. The vampire's other hand was occupied by Luna and Giles was once again amazed by the change in William the Bloody. With the trigger fixed – although Giles was still confused as how it did get fixed – he had finally begun to trust that the vampire might be beneficial to them.

Likely what was the most surprising to Giles was seeing that in the second row, next to Robin and Andrew, was Willow and Kennedy sitting very close together. The two women were not touching but were looking at each other in such an intimate way that Giles felt rather uneasy. He had grown quite fond of Sirius Black in the last four months – although at first he was quite concerned about their age difference even though he did suppose that Willow was still doing better age-wise than Buffy – and thought he was a good support system for Willow in these past tumultuous eight months. It was overall quite odd that Willow was sitting with Kennedy and not Sirius, or even one of the other Scoobies.

All these thoughts took place in a few seconds and Giles took a deep breath before continuing with a slight smile.

"However, what you may not know is that in the decades of knowing and reading about previous slayers, I have never seen a more capable unit of dedicated, intelligent, hard-working, and _good_ people. If there is a group best able to beat back the darkness, it is the young men and women in front of me right now."

His heart lightened to see everyone's smiles break through the despair on their faces.

"And while we _will_ win, it unfortunately will not come without sacrifice. Tonight, we celebrate the glorious dead who gave their lives in battle – Alana Pitt, Athena Wolfe, Lisa Wolfe, Becky Beeluv, Aryll Martinov, and Eliane Gardiena. As we take moments to remember them, any and all are invited to speak." With that, Giles motioned towards the podium and took a seat next to Anya.

Rona and Vi, the de facto co-leaders of the potentials, stood up and walked to the podium. Rona's dreads were pulled back into a low ponytail that softened her face and made her chocolate brown eyes appear larger than normal. Vi, who linked her arm through her friend's, had replaced her typical beret with a clip that pulled her red hair out of her eyes and made her face appear even more pixie-like. Both girls seemed to imbue a sense of nervous energy – as if they weren't use to public speaking.

"Hello everyone," Vi piped up first. "Um, me and Rona wanted to be the ones to speak first."

"Yeah, we've been here the longest, 'sides Kennedy, and have seen everyone come – and unfortunately go."

"Becky was an amazing girl and I think she showed, with her verbal jabs at that Evil Bastard—"

"—Also known as Caleb," Rona explained with a grin at Vi.

"—That she was one of the bravest girls I've ever met and definitely one of the funniest. She brought us a bit of that Midwestern charm—"

Here all the potentials began laughing, since anyone who knew Becky definitely knew what kind of snarky 'don't mess with me or mine' 'charm' she had.

Vi grinned and continued. "A bit of that Midwestern Cleveland charm that I think we all appreciated."

"Lisa Wolfe will also be greatly missed. Even though she came to us recently, thanks to her one-on-one trainings with Faith these past two weeks she became of the craziest fighters we had. I think we can all agree that when she stabbed that Evil Bastard's eye we all felt a rush of pride at seeing her stand up to him," Rona said with a sad smile.

"Athena Wolfe, Lisa cousin, was also a wonderful contribution that will be missed. Her sheer energy – whether it was teaching us Greek dancing and forcing us to eat goat cheese – really helped make days inside this magical mansion of ours a lot better," Vi said with a nod and a smile.

"Alana Pitt was also an amazing member of our team. From New York like me, that girl was one of the best damn strategists I had ever met. Whenever we sparred in groups, she was always the one you wanted at your side because no one could out-think whatever crazy attack she'd create next," Rona grinned and the crowd laughed gently as they remembered some of her more memorable moments.

"Finally," Vi said, "Aryll Martinov will be greatly missed. From Europe, she traveled a long way to be here but when she did arrive, she easily settled in. After all, as she said, fighting demons and vampires was a heck of a lot better than being stuck in Calculus class back home!"

At this, small giggles erupted throughout the crowd of potentials – all of them had previous agreed that deadly battles were a small price to pay for avoiding school most of the year.

Vi and Rona were quickly replaced by Luna who walked barefoot up to the podium with a graceful gait that had her long dress swish quietly over the ground. Her large blue eyes blinked languidly as she observed everyone present and dark circles could be noticed underneath her eyes; as if she had not yet slept. Her serene face was slightly marred by a tightness around her eyes that indicated anxiety plagued her and when she began talking her lilting, gentle voice was shaky, but it smoothed out as she spoke longer.

"Hello. I am sure that many of you do not know the final person that Mr. Giles spoke of. You see, Eliane Irene Gardiena was my grandmother; my mother's mother. She disappeared long ago but came today to help me. Last night when Caleb took hold of me, somehow The First pushed itself into me to attempt to retrieve memories and knowledge."

Luna frowned. "Whether it is getting stronger or if it was just something that was possible due to my own heritage, I am unsure. But my grandmother came today and she used her magic to fight against The First's infiltration of my mind. I—I can't say I really understand what happened," Luna shrugged as she nibbled her bottom lip nervously.

"But I do know that when I awoke Grandmum Eliane was next to me and breathing her last breaths. She," Luna winced painfully and took in a shaky breath. "She gave her life for me."

There was silence for a moment as Luna gathered her thoughts and the crowd gazed at her with sympathy.

"She was a wonderful women and I am quite sad that I never got to see her after my mother's death until this afternoon. But I understand her reasons for leaving. You see, my grandmother was a Guardian."

Loud gasps and exclamations of surprise carried across the light breeze as Luna waited patiently.

"I did not know, you see. I thought I was a potential like all of you. But instead my grandmother told me, in her final words, that I was the Last Guardian. And as we mourn our family and friends today, I want to let you know that I will do everything in my power to live up to my grandmother's expectations and protect each of you until the end of days," Luna stated significantly.

"And," Luna glanced up at the stars that were just beginning to twinkle in the twilight before giving them a gentle smile, " I know there is a great darkness that approaches us, but remember that the night is always darkest before dawn."

With those final words Luna looked each audience member in the eye before nodding and descending the stairs to made her way back to her seat next to Spike.

Giles smiled grimly, feeling relieved at the young Guardian's words. Sure, he had also said supportive words to those gathered but it helped immensely for him to hear someone else say it. As Buffy and Faith approached the podium, Giles half-turned in his seat to inspect the faces of the children around him to see how they were faring. But what caught his eye was a slight figure dressed in a black wizarding robe who was standing past Buckbeak under the cover of the back porch.

Silently he stood up – not wanting to disturb the girls speaking – and made his way to the woman. She was quite attractive and roughly his age or perhaps younger. Hair as black as coal was pulled back into a tight bun and husky-colored blue eyes gave him a steely gaze as he approached.

"May I help you?" he asked in a low whisper; curious about the strange women watching their service.

"I should hope so. I am Secretary Katherine Asp of the American Department of Magic."

Immediately Giles' suspicions rose as he surveyed the aunt of Luke Matthews, traitor to them all. "Ah, yes. I am quite surprised to see you here," he told her in a cool voice that hinted at a reappearance of Ripper.

She blanched slightly at his tone before pursing her lips and staring at him accusingly. "What's going on here?" she asked as she gestured towards the memorial service. "Last night was the battle and I have not seen Luke yet – he was supposed to report in immediately!"

Giles let out a mirthless laugh. "You are worried about your nephew?"

Her features hardened like a Greek statue as she gave him a stare that had the beauty of Aphrodite mixed with the wrath of Medusa. "Am I worried about my nephew?" she asked archly in a thin voice. "My nephew has been spending all his free time on this assignment; setting up portkeys and assisting your group in every way possible. Then he tells me you are ambushing this Caleb fellow and then I never hear from him afterwards – don't you _think_ I have a right to be worried, sir?"

"No need for such unfamiliarity when you speak to those you betray, Ms. Asp. You may call me Rupert Giles," he said in a chilling tone as he gave her a false smile.

The Secretary's eyes widened in disbelief as she took a step back. "Wha—What did you just say to me, Mr. Giles?"

He leaned in menacingly. "You know exactly what I just said, Ms. Asp. You see, we once made the mistake of taking help from another – although non-magical – government entity and it didn't work out for us. It appears that your government is also no good because that blasted, foul nephew of yours spelled our portkeys last night to lead my people into a death trap designed by Caleb!" Giles hissed.

Katherine Asp's face scrunched up in confusion and shock as his words traveled to her ears. "A death trap?"

"Yes. Our three groups portkeyed right into magical cages and Caleb was able to murder three of them before everyone could escape. Meanwhile, the wards Willow designed were disabled that same moment and dozens of vampires and demons attacked this house where the rest of our people were." Giles' head pounded furiously with rushing blood as his heart rate increased exponentially.

"You are accusing Luke of betraying you and your people?" Secretary Asp asked in a quiet, precise voice.

"Yes," Giles vehemently answered. "And what I would like to know is how much farther this business travels – if Luke was working along or _you_ aided him in his efforts to wipe out my girls!"

Blue eyes flashed dangerously and Secretary Asp pressed her finger against his chest as stepped forward. "You, my dear sir, speak out of line. I had nothing to do with betraying the slayers and never would do anything to help out the First Evil. Nor would have my nephew. After losing my sister and his aunt to the Bringers, we would be the last people to help them."

Giles sneered as he stared the woman down. "Oh? And just how do you think we got led into that trap?"

"You pompous fool," she hissed. "I though Watchers were intelligent. Try thinking outside of the box, Mr. Giles. Perhaps someone used polyjuice potion to take on the form of my nephew or someone Imperiused him – used mind control – to get him to do those awful things. Or something else, even. Dark wizards and witches are no stranger to wicked spells to get their way and if they are working for the First Evil then they most certainly would try anything."

Pausing for a moment, Giles realized she made a decent point. Yet… "Indeed? Well we have already taken care of the British Unspeakables working for the First. Willow killed Lucius Malfoy and Alecto Carrow and you have Amy Madison in your wizarding prison. Tell me, Madam Secretary, if it wasn't your nephew then who was it?" he asked acidly.

Katherine Asp vibrated with rage as she granted Giles a frosty glare while clenching her fists. "It wasn't my nephew, I know that. And I'm going to send my people out to find him. And when they do find him, they'll find your true antagonist."

"Yes, well, in the meantime we have no more use for your government's services," Giles said airily as he gave her a cool, calculating. "Good day, madam."

"Good day, _sir_," Secretary Asp spat out as she turned her back to leave.

"Oh, and Madam Secretary?" Giles called out softly.

"Yes?" she asked as she gave him a heated glare.

"Please know that if you or any of your wizarding folk return to Sunnydale my people will not hesitate to kill on sight – do you understand me?" Giles asked in a soft, murderous tone that indicated his matter-of-fact intentions.

Katherine Asp's eyes widened slightly before narrowing into thin slits. "I understand," she said venomously before walking off the Summers' lawn and apparating away.

Rupert Giles took a deep breath as he began walking back towards the service; ignoring Buffy as she gave him a puzzled look. Slowly, he restrained Ripper once more and prayed that he could help keep his children safe for just a little bit longer.

* * *

A/N:

Yes, I know. This chapter is short. But you know my chapter length depends on the subject material and if things mesh well together; and I thought this memorial service scene really should stand alone.

Coming up in future chapters: Remus finds a place to stay, the boys drink to their sorrows, and something unexpected happens…

Yes, and I know some of you may be frustrated by this lack of communication between Sirius and Willow. Remember, the this and the last 4 chapters have all occurred within the same 24-hours so please be patient as Willow/Sirius unfolds. I promise, it will be interesting.

Oh, and is it just me, but don't Giles and Secretary Asp have some nice fire to them? That just sort of came out as I wrote it… Hmmm, if she isn't evil or doesn't die, or heck, if Giles doesn't die, they might make a nice couple ;) heehee.

Please review, m'dearest and beloved Readers :)


	77. Two Broody Boys Dudes Excellent Adventur

Two Broody Dudes Most Excellent Adventure

A/N:

Yup, I never intended to feature any more Angel people… But then this idea came to me… Thanks to AllenPitt for chatting with me about it :)

Angel spoilers through the end of Season 4. Oh, and a surprise crossover!

And this isn't the right chapter to feature it, but please go check out a BEAUTIFUL piece of !Story Art! that the amazingly talented and generous MistressAshley created for 'Willow's Thief'. Honestly, I just recently found her work and am astounded by the amount of talent and creativity she has. Please check her stuff out – it's awesome!

* * *

Remus shivered in the cold rain as he tugged his thin coat around him even tighter. After leaving the Summers' house he had managed to find an abandoned car with the keys still in it – which was the only way for him to leave Sunnydale since Caleb had broken his wand.

Caleb. He had to force the bile back down his throat at the mere mention of the man. Never in all of Remus' years had his werewolf side inflicted pain and death on someone – knowing that he had murdered Aryll and turned Ida made him feel queasy with acidic guilt. He shouldn't have been surprised that the First had been able to turn him – after all, if it could turn an ensouled vampire evil than it should have no trouble with a half-breed like himself.

He let out an irritable sigh as he walked down the sidewalk – parking was apparently a pain in L.A. – and tried to cast out those darker thoughts. After four months of living in Sunnydale with Anya and Sirius and the others, Remus had finally started to feel accepted. There it was like he _mattered_ - just like it had been with the Marauders at Hogwarts. Neither group cared about his werewolf side and they treated him like normal; like family even. Sure, there were jokes about his 'little furry problem' but never anything serious.

A sudden laugh trickled past his lips as he remembered Anya's humorous confusion on what his 'furry problem' was. That conversation always made him smile when he thought of it – Anya truly was the funniest woman he knew, along with many other things. He was saddened to leave her but… What else could he do? If the First could manipulate him like a marionette than he was a danger to her; to all of them.

Finally reaching his destination, Remus slowly pushed open the double doors and took a moment to observe the empty room. It certainly appeared as Sirius had described it, as a grand hotel, but Remus was more than a little surprised at how _normal_ it looked. Never would he have thought that a team of supernatural fighters were headquartered here. However, what was odd was the amount of garbage that littered the lobby – like someone had just thrown a large party of some sort.

"Hello?" he called out tentatively as he stepped forward and dropped his bags. No one answered and Remus walked in further. Hearing angry sounds coming from an office, Remus hoped he hadn't come at a bad time. From what Sirius had told him, these people were already busy with their own evil, the 'Beast's Master' or something.

"Hold on, I hear someone," he heard a low, male voice say.

Remus stilled – at that moment he realized it was never good to surprise trained fighters. "Uh, hello there?" he called out again.

A woman with long, curly dark brown hair popped out of the office and smiled nervously at him. "Oh, um, I'm sorry but we're not renting rooms out anymore. But, uh, there's a motel down the street!" she informed him brightly.

Remus grinned at her; her nervous chatter reminded him of Willow or a very guilty Dawn who had not done her homework. "I'm a friend of Sirius and Willow's; I drove here from Sunnydale."

"Oh!" she exclaimed in surprise before turning back into the office. "He's a friend of Sirius and Willow's," she informed in a quieter voice.

Soon more people – if the green-skinned demon was classified as 'people' – stepped out of the room. The green-skinned demon had bright red horns and was wearing an outfit even gaudier than Minister of Magic Fudge. There was also a bald, dark-skinned man wearing jeans and a hoodie, a man with thick brown hair and glasses, and a tall, broad-shouldered man with spikey brown hair.

"Hello there," Remus smiled. "My name is Remus Lupin and I'm a wizard. I'm actually trying to fly back home to England but the next flight there isn't until tomorrow. Would you mind if I stayed here?" he asked quickly. He disliked asking for favors – due to his frequent joblessness that's all his life felt like sometimes – but he needed a place to stay.

"Remus, I'm Angel," the man with gelled hair said as he shook Remus' hand. "This is Fred, Gunn, Wesley, and Lorne. You say you're a wizard?"

"Ah, yes. I went to school with Sirius."

"Sirius!" exclaimed Lorne with a wide smile. "Ah, I see. And just how is my new English friend?"

Remus grinned; he had heard a bit about Lorne. "He's alright. Things there are not going very well but he's healed from his injuries, I heard."

"Injuries? What happened?" Fred asked.

He was about to answer her when Angel cut him off. "Listen, we can figure that out later. Look, I need to find my son. You're a wizard – can you find him?"

Eyes widening in surprise at the vampire's level of nervous aggravation, Remus nodded. "Do you have anything of his?"

"Yeah, hold on," Angel said before running to the upstairs of the hotel.

"Is everything alright?" Remus asked the remaining members of the team in concern.

Gunn shrugged. "Well, we just faced off against a mega-power who was chompin' down on dozens a people a day while attempting to brainwash the entire world."

"And Angel quit it from making with the brainwashing and his son, Connor, killed her," Fred added in that same everyday tone that contrasted sharply with her words.

"Oh…Alright," Remus nodded; beginning to think that dealing with Voldemort years ago really had been nothing to what these people face.

"Here," Angel said as he placed a dagger into Remus' hands.

Remus looked at it in confusion. "Um, the object should be something hold personal value if you want to find him."

Angel looked at him like he was an idiot. "That's his favorite dagger; he loves that thing."

While Remus had heard stories from Sirius about the vampire's son, he was still taken aback at the idea of a weapon being a beloved object. Then, as he was about to pull out his wand he realized his mistake. "Er," he cleared his throat. "I'm sorry, its been such a long day… I just remembered that one of the First's men broke my wand last night."

"What?" Angel shouted as he threw up his hands. "God, as if there isn't enough going wrong. You know, just forget it. I'll find Connor on my own and you all keep searching as well," he ordered them.

Remus was frozen for a moment as he watched the vampire rush out of the hotel. "Oh," he winced. "I'm terribly sorry." Once more, Remus felt like a ridiculous screw-up. The one thing he was great at – magic – and now he didn't even have a bloody wand!

"Don't worry about it," Fred told him gently. "Angel's just really worried right now. He's usually a lot nicer."

"Right," Remus sighed, not sure if the girl was just being nice.

"Ok then. I guess we move out, yeah?" Gunn asked them all. "Fred and I will check out the south side while you two hit up the north, cool?"

Remus nodded, still in shock as to how quickly events were moving. Wesley gave him a tight smile and grabbed two motorcycle helmets from behind the reception desk. "Ever ridden a motorcycle before? I know Sirius said that wizards shy away from technology."

"Yeah, I've ridden one, sorta," Remus grinned as he remembered. "Sirius had bewitched a motorcycle to fly back when we had graduated from Hogwarts."

"Excellent," Wesley smiled as he gestured for Remus to follow him outside. "Also, I've been doing some research since Sirius visited us and discovered a small wizarding community on the north side of town. If it doesn't take a long time to procure one, would you like to get a new wand? That would prove valuable, I'm sure, in our search for Connor."

Letting out a sigh of relief, Remus nodded. Finally, something was going right for him today.

The subsequent trip on the motorcycle was far different than Remus was used to – flying one was so much more pleasant since the fumes from the surrounding cars were nauseating. Once they had reached the small alley, Wesley had led him to a small brick-stoned pub that reminded Remus of a cross between the Leaky Cauldron and the Hog's Head Inn. Inside the air was filled with pipe smoke, plenty of butterbeers, and lively conversation – until they stepped inside, that is. All voices died down as they gave the two men a close inspection.

"Ya boys lost?" asked a deeply tanned woman who was cleaning out a mug with a rag.

"No, I need to get a wand – mine was snapped in a battle," Remus explained; feeling uneasy underneath so many eyes.

"A wand?" the woman grinned. "I dunno what you be talkin' 'bout."

Remus rolled his eyes. "Listen, the Statute of Secrecy does not apply to me. I am a former Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor at Hogwarts underneath Professor Albus Dumbledore in England."

The woman set the glass down and gave him a sincere smile. "Well, alright then. Sorry, but we always gotta be careful, ya know. Wand shop is out the back door and to your right."

"Thank you," Remus smiled as he followed her instructions.

* * *

As hypothesized, the search for a wand luckily did not take long – although it didn't feel as comfortable in his hand as his old one. Merlin damn that Caleb.

Wesley pulled Connor's dagger out of his sack and handed it to Remus. As quickly as possible Remus completed the spell and laid a compass – procured at a wizarding shop – in his palm. Then Wesley and Remus flew through the darkening city as they struggled to find the boy before the sun set.

"Wait," Remus shouted into Wesley's ear – Merlin, did he feel uncomfortable holding onto a man he had just met. "Go right!"

Wesley cut across two lanes of traffic as they came to a beach area. "Okay, off here," Remus ordered and Wesley cut the engine. For roughly half a mile they followed the compass until finally Wesley lightly shouldered him.

"That's him," he whispered as he pointed to a tall, slim young man with light brown hair that hung in his eyes.

Unfortunately, Connor's hearing must have been as good as a vampire because the boy glanced up in surprise before running away.

Quickly Remus disapparated and then apparated twenty feet in front of the escaping boy. "Connor, please wait! My name is Remus Lupin and I'd like to help you."

Connor glared at him and balled his fists. "Lemme guess, dear old dad sent you, didn't he?" Then he sniffed and gave Remus a suspicious look. "Wait, you're not human."

Remus shrugged. "Well, most of the time I am."

"You're a werewolf?" Connor asked skeptically after sniffing several more times.

"Yes, and could you please stop sniffing me? That makes me feel like I need a shower or something?" Remus stated with dry humor.

The corners of his lips rose slightly before a scowl slammed back into place. "Why do you smell like you just changed? I can smell the wolf on you, but the full moon isn't for another week at least."

Remus let out a heavy sigh and ran a hand through his disheveled hair. "Merlin, you can tell that? You are talented."

"You didn't answer my question," Connor said suspiciously; likely debating if Remus was a threat or not.

"Well, I'm not quite sure how to explain this," Remus mused out loud. "Do you know how some people can become possessed? Well, that happened to me last night."

"Who did it?" Connor asked in a curious tone as a indescribable expression passed painfully across his face.

"The First Evil."

Off Connor's confused look, Remus laughed and conjured two chairs. He gestured for Connor to sit in one while he sat down in the other. Of course, Connor didn't take his offer but his battle stance did soften a little.

"Worse than it sounds, honestly," Remus grinned before he began explaining what the First Evil was and how it was after all the potential slayers. He went on to describe his role as a wizarding instructor and the events of the previous four months since he arrived in Sunnydale. By the time he got to around to discussing the previous night's event, the sky was already dark – but Connor still had not moved from his defensive position.

"Anyways, so Caleb had already murdered two of the girls before he set his sights on me," Remus said in a bitter tone as his eyes darted towards the ocean. A part of him didn't want to speak on the matter at all but another part of him felt relieved to talk about it with an outsider.

Plus, there was a level of despair in Connor's eyes that made Remus think the boy needed to hear about a life outside his own; even if it was only a momentary escape. Remus' experience working with youth only lasted a year at Hogwarts and half a year with Dawn and the potentials, but Remus knew that sometimes the only way a teenager would listen to someone – in this case, to convince Connor to go back to the hotel – they needed to validate themselves by sharing their own personal stories. After all, that was how he had come to know a great deal about Dawn and Luna.

"What did he do to you?" Connor spoke for the first time since Remus had begun and he realized he must have paused too long.

"He grabbed me and the First _pushed_ into me…And it was horrible. Terrifying and excruciating all at once. That creation truly was _pure_ evil and it traveled through my body like thick, black oil." Remus shuddered as he looked at his hands. "It touched the beast that lives inside me and awoke it – never before has that happened. Then Caleb stuck me back inside the cage."

"I—I tried to fight it, but the change had already been triggered. The next thing I know I was covered with blood and immobile due to a charm. The blood was," Remus swallowed heavily. "The blood was not my own."

He looked up, surprised to see that Connor was now seated across from him in the conjured chair. "You see, in my werewolf state I killed one potential and bit another – cursing her forever with the burden of the beast."

Remus sighed; feeling slightly better but not by much. "And that is why I'm here. I'm a danger to them all now that the First can trigger my change."

For a long time the two of them sat in respectful silence. Remus had noticed that Wesley had left a long time ago and he was relieved for it – likely the presence of one of Angel's friends would certainly have scared the boy off. During the middle of the talk he had sent a Patronus message to Wesley to explain the situation – relieved that with a Patronus you only had to think the message and Remus had easily distracted Connor with other spells so the boy wouldn't get suspicious.

"I'm running away, too," Connor finally said in a small voice as his eyes looked everywhere but at Remus.

"Why?" Remus simply asked in a kind tone that promised confidentiality and no judgment.

Connor's hands gripped the sides of the easy chair and his face looked raw with fresh pain. "Because I killed her. Because I tried to kill him. Because I thought she loved me, but she didn't. Because I thought he loved me, but I'm sure he can't. Because there's no where in this world for me to go." He stared out into the ocean and by the light of the waxing moon Remus noticed Connor's eyes shining slightly with unshed tears.

"Would you like to start at the beginning?" Remus suggested quietly.

Connor gave him a hard look. "No! I don't want to talk about it!" he screeched before burying his face in his hands.

Remus blanched slightly at the boy's outburst but then remembered that he had been living with dozens of teenage girls for four months – he could do this.

"That's fine," he shrugged as he went about conjuring a small table, two glasses, and a pitcher of butterbeer. "It's a lovely night and after yesterday I wouldn't mind relaxing with a non-Sunnydalian, if you do not mind joining me."

Giving him a suspicious look, Connor hesitantly took the glass that Remus offered him. "Wait, so you're not going to force me to talk?"

He shook his head as he chuckled softly. "Merlin, no! I'm rather introverted myself; likely my earlier stories were the result of more stress than I'm used to dealing with."

With a shrug, Connor sipped his glass. "Whoa! What is this?" he asked in alarm.

Raising his glass with a mischievous grin, Remus snickered. "The wonders of magic, m'dear boy. I simply used magic to move some ocean water into that jug and then transfigured it into butterbeer."

"Butter-what?" Connor asked in shock as he looked at the substance suspiciously.

He chuckled at the boy's suspicion of everything. Although, on the other hand he wondered why the boy felt he had to always react that way.

"Butterbeer. It's an excellent drink in the wizarding world; very popular for the kids your age."

Connor took another tentative sip and then gave Remus his first smile of the night. "I suppose it is pretty good. So, what's the wizarding world like, anyways?"

So Remus talked for several hours about the wizarding world – he figured the Statute of Secrecy did not apply to a child of two vampires – and incredibly Connor seemed to relax and even interrupted with questions.

"So are you happy to go back to England, then?" Connor finally asked as the moon rose high in the sky.

Remus' jaw tightened as he looked down at his hand again; slowly swirling his butterbeer in his cup. "Quite honestly, no," he said after a moment.

"Well, why not? Won't you be happy to get away from the Hellmouth evil and go back to your magical world?" Connor asked curiously; staring at Remus like he was a puzzle to be solved.

"Ah, yes," he acquiesced softly. "In a way. But mostly, no."

"Why?" Connor pestered and for the first time Remus wished he had not been so open with the boy – for this was a subject he would rather not think on too closely.

"Because people I love are still in Sunnydale and I hate that I must leave them. Plus, the wizarding world has a great deal of prejudice against werewolves so I'm certainly no popular fellow and will definitely be jobless when I arrive there."

"Wait – wizards hate werewolves? But they're magical people!" Connor scoffed at the foolishness of it.

"Yes, well they think we are half-breeds – less than human. Few people are willing to hire a man who turns into a beast three nights out of the month," Remus answered in a melancholy tone.

"Well, that's stupid!" Connor cried out in anger. "That's stupid that they should hate you when they don't even know you!"

Remus gave the boy a weak smile; appreciative of his outburst on his behalf but wondering what anger and resentment lurked within the boy. "Yes, it is rather stupid, isn't it? I hope someday it will change but…" He shrugged, at a loss for words.

"So why not stay in Sunnydale then?"

"Because, the First may turn me again and force me to kill people I care for," Remus reminded him gently.

Connor leaned forward and gestured with his free hand. "Can't you just do a spell against it?"

Remus laughed out loud. "Don't I wish! Unfortunately, magic cannot solve everything and any against the First never seems to work."

"Hmm, well that's why I hate magic. It's really not as useful as people think it is; and all it brings is sadness."

"I suppose that is true, sometimes," Remus agreed. "Has it brought you sadness?"

Connor glared at him again before taking a big swig of butterbeer. "I _told_ you, I don't want to talk about myself!"

Remus bit back a reprimand for Connor's tone and let it pass. Clearly, this was a boy who would truly test his infamous amount of patience.

So he just shrugged nonchalantly and took another sip of his drink. "That's fine, Connor. Is there anything else you'd like to know about the wizarding world?"

Silence for a moment, and then, "Yeah. Um, what do you know about magical creatures? I mean, you used to teach about them, right?"

"Yes," he replied as he gave Connor a thoughtful look.

"So have you ever heard of a kid born from two vampires before?"

Ah. So this is where Connor's curiosity led to. "Some of the Slavic cultures have spoken of dhampirs before; a child born of a human mother and a vampire father. But you are unique, Connor."

More silence.

"So does that mean I'm evil?" he asked finally.

His brows furrowed in alarmed confusion as he stared at the boy. "Evil? Great Merlin's Beard, why would you think that Connor?"

"Because I think I am," he said in a quiet voice. "I was only born so Jasmine could be unleashed into the world. I helped a demonic creature try to take over the world. And I slept with Cordy which _clearly_ I should have known that she was possessed because no one would want me otherwise.

"No one wants me for me. People just like to use me," he added in a hard voice as he stared at the drink in his hand.

Remus pondered on the correct path to take this conversation as he glanced at the brooding boy. "The most wonderful and simultaneously painful thing in this world, Connor, is the ability to make our own choices. I am unfamiliar with what exactly occurred here, but just because you were used for evil purposes does not mean that you are evil. In fact, I heard that you were responsible for destroying Jasmine. That, to me, proves your worth because you made a choice to help others, not to hurt them."

"I hurt Jasmine," he sighed forlornly. "I know she was a lie but… Everyone lies. At least her lie was easier to swallow, you know? She made me feel loved and even if it was a lie it made me happy. But then I had to kill her – or else she would have killed my…dad." Connor shook his head and Remus interpreted that some serious father-son issues existed.

"You did what you had to do. And I know life seems hard, but at the same time you're only, what? Seventeen? There's a lot of time for you to figure things out and find your place."

"What if I don't have one?" Connor asked him bitterly.

Remus smiled at him. "Everyone has a place – sometimes it's just a journey to get there."

"Oh yeah? Well, where's your place?" Connor asked sarcastically.

Gingerly, he rubbed his temple with his fingers as he looked out onto the ocean with a sad smile. "Sunnydale."

* * *

Eventually, after several more hours of talking, the sun began to rise and Remus convinced Connor to head back to the hotel. In no way did he think the boy was emotionally stable but he was certainly better off than he had been earlier. Angel and the others had immediately greeted the two but Connor bypassed Angel's questions to storm off to his room. Realizing that left Remus with an overprotective vampire father, he did his best to answer all of his questions.

Finally, Angel seemed satisfied – which was good because Remus was damn tired!

"By the way," Angel said as Remus gathered up his bags to take up to his room. "Wesley told me what happened in Sunnydale. The First Evil possessed you?"

"In a way," Remus sighed. "It touched the beast within me and woke it up; forced me to turn."

"Well, I've heard of things like that happening before and after Wesley told me you were trying to talk some sense into Connor at the beach I made a call to an old friend," Angel shrugged nonchalantly.

"Who?" Remus asked curiously. "He can help me fight the First?"

Angel grinned. "I worked a few cases with Bobby over the last couple decades and he knows his stuff; is a great informant too. But best of all I remember him recently telling me about keeping demons out of bodies using a tattoo."

It felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. "Really?" he gasped in surprise. "This Bobby fellow could prevent further attacks from the First?"

"Trust me, Bobby's got all sorts of tricks up his sleeve," Angel chuckled.

"Uh, just one thing, though," Angel added.

"What's that?" Remus asked.

"It would probably be best if you didn't mention you were a werewolf. I mean, it took him a long time to get used to an ensouled vampire saving his ass but I don't wanna push it, okay?"

* * *

Remus smiled nervously as Bobby began pulling out his tattoo equipment. With his flannel shirt, thick mustache, beard, and cap, he didn't seem intimidating… But after hearing some stories from Angel he knew better and he just hoped Bobby didn't figure out he was a werewolf.

"So you've got some demon trying to play house with ya?" Bobby asked gruffly as he sat down next to Remus on the couch in the Hyperion lobby. "Whadja do to piss it off?"

"They were just using me to get to my friends," Remus shrugged.

"Must be some interesting friends you got. I take on account of your accent you're not from America, so why'd you come here? You a hunter? Angel never said," Bobby said as he set up the sterile equipment on a metal table, all the while keeping on eye on Remus.

"A hunter?" Remus asked curiously.

Bobby raised an eyebrow. "You know, someone who hunts demons? I figured there'd be no other reason for you to be fightin' one."

"Oh!" Remus remembered hearing about those humans who fought demons. "No, I study them though. My friends in Sunnydale, they fight them."

"Holy shit," Bobby breathed as he placed his hands on his knees and stared at him in wonder. "Don't you be tellin' me your friends with the Slayer?"

Remus wondered if this was information he should be spreading, but Bobby was a friend of Angel's and obviously on the side of good. "Yes. We're been dealing with some things up there."

"Damn," Bobby chuckled. "You've got balls, kid. I sure was glad when I heard they sent a Slayer there, 'cause no Hunter wanted nothin' to do with that place. Sure, some of the crazy ones with death wishes would go but we mostly steered clear of that place."

"So you know about the Slayers?" Remus inquired curiously, his love of learning overtaking him.

"Sure," Bobby shrugged. "Wait," he asked as confusion marred his face. "Slayers? There's just one."

"Uh." Remus wasn't quite sure what to say. "Not anymore. One of them died momentarily and was resuscitated with CPR. Ever since then there's been two."

"Well I'll be damned! That's the craziest thing I've ever heard!" Bobby laughed. "Course, can't say I'm too surprised that I haven't heard that before. Those slayer folks are a secretive lot and most Hunters don't even know about them. So, what's going on there now? They got another hell god or something?"

"The First Evil, actually," Remus smiled grimly; finding a bit of amusement in the way Bobby's jaw dropped.

"You're shittin' me."

"I shit you not," Remus snorted at the older man. "No, it wants to open up the Hellmouth and devour the earth."

"Well….Damn. This is definitely on the house," Bobby grinned. "Guess you're alright, kid. Now let's give you this Devil's Trap tattoo and send you off."

And then, for the next twenty excruciating minutes, Remus Lupin received his first, and likely last, tattoo.

* * *

As Remus sat and ate lunch in the lobby after Bobby left, Angel, Connor, Fred, Gunn, Lorne, and Wesley came down to check in on him.

"Yo, nice tat!" Gunn grinned as he sprawled onto the couch. "I'm thinkin' of getting one of those too."

Connor sat as far away from the others as possible and pulled his knees up to his chin. "It hurt?"

"Yeah," Remus winced. "I've had better afternoons."

"Well, at least now you can hit the road, honey bear!" Lorne grinned. "Don't want to keep that pretty girl of yours waiting."

Remus put down his sandwich and bit his lip. "Actually, about that. Angel," he said as he looked up at the vampire. "I am immensely grateful for you using your connection to Bobby and certainly feel safer now that no one can force me to change. But, I've been thinking… I'm not sure if I will drive up. After all, I already did buy my plane ticket…"

"You're not going to go?" Everyone exclaimed to some degree.

"I… I don't know if I can see them again. Ida, who I cursed forever. Or anyone who saw me change and rip apart Aryll. I…I mean, who even knows if they want me back?"

"What? So you're just going to abandon them? I thought last night you said they were like your family!" Connor shouted as he stood up and gave Remus a betrayed look.

"Yes, but—"

"But nothing! You're just being a coward! After all, you told me everything that's happening. What if Anya dies because you're _not_ there? Have you ever thought of that?"

Doubt and guilt began to swirl through Remus at Connor's words. "It's just—It's complicated, Connor."

"It's complicated? Don't you mean you just want to get away with abandoning your family?" Connor asked Remus, but the whole time he stared at Angel.

"Connor—" Angel began to say.

"You're right," Remus said softly.

"Huh?" Connor asked in surprise.

"You're right. I—I thought by leaving I could keep her, all of them safe. But with this tattoo I could go back but I really am afraid to. Afraid of what people will think when they see a murderer in their midst."

"Well, shoot, most people in this room have killed a person, Remus. Sorry, but you're not special boy when it comes to murder," Gunn drawled with a raised brow.

"Yeah, and if you're staying at Buffy's house, you really aren't special," Angel scoffed as he folded his arms. "I mean, apparently Spike bloody lives there, and Willow killed a guy, and Anya killed tons when she was a demon, and Giles has never mentioned it but there's something in his eyes that makes me think he has, oh, and Faith is there too."

Fred gave him a bright smile. "Yeah, so now it's like you'll just fit in better!"

Remus couldn't help it – speaking of murder and death so casually should have weighed on his conscience but instead he just found himself laughing at the absurdity of the situation, and quickly everyone else began laughing as well.

"Alright," he finally said once the laughter dissolved.

"You're going?" Fred asked hopefully.

"Yes," Remus smiled.

"Good, because I want to go with you."

Everyone looked at Connor in alarm. "But—But why?" Angel asked in shock. "I mean, the First Evil is there and it's dangerous and don't you—don't you want to stay here?" he asked in a voice that tinged with hurt.

Connor shook his head. "I've thought a lot today and I'm still really confused about things. But there is one thing I have figured out."

"What?" Angel asked.

"I need to leave here."

Fred and Lorne looked sad while Gunn and Wesley looked like they were trying to hide their relief. Angel just looked pained.

"Is it because of Jasmine? Is it because of me? Did I do something?"

"Just," Connor shrugged. "This," he stared over as he gestured around the hotel. "This has not been a happy place for me. My whole seventeen years have sucked and I'm tired of it. I want something new. And after listening to Remus talk about Sunnydale and magic and all the people living there, I want to try that."

Angel gave Remus a murderous glance, and Remus quickly shrugged his shoulders as if to explain away any supposed guilt.

"But—"

"Maybe he should go, Angel. Connor is a man, almost, now and should be able to make his own decisions. Maybe a change of scenery would do him good," Wesley suggested.

There was a long moment of quiet while Angel internally debated. "Fine," he said." Then he walked up to Connor and placed both hands on the boy's shoulders. "Be safe, son."

Connor stared into his eyes and nodded. "I will…dad."

Then Angel stepped to Remus and stared him straight in the eye. "You take care of my son, alright? Otherwise, I _will_ eat you."

Seeing the vampire stare at him in such an intimidating way, Remus could just nod at first. "We'll help keep him safe," Remus promised; not sure how well he would be able to keep that promise.

As Remus and Connor said their good-byes and put their bags into Remus' borrowed car, they began making the drive up to Sunnydale. Remus was especially pleased that this particular car seemed to have some navigation system that featured a talking Englishwoman; it made the drive for a wizarding foreigner so much easier.

After a couple hours of driving they parked against the curb and quietly got all their belongings out of the trunk.

"So, you really think they won't mind if I'm here?" Connor asked self-consciously.

Remus smirked at the teenager. "For one, Buffy and Faith will love to have another super-strength person, especially one called 'The Destroyer.' And considering there are forty teenage girls here and you're the only teenage boy, the potentials will _really_ love you."

Connor gulped nervously.

He had only been gone slightly over twenty-four hours, but Remus was incredibly anxious about seeing everyone. But, he had a good excuse – right? It made sense for him to leave so he didn't hurt anyone – right?

Remus sighed. He just hoped they understood that.

Knocking lightly at the door, Remus was surprised a moment later to hear Xander shout, "Hey! Remus is at the door! And he's got some androgynous teenager with him!"

There was more shouting but Remus couldn't make it out.

"Nope! Can't tell if he's a potential or not! Could be a boy! I mean, I guess I could do enhanced x-ray vision on this thing, but underage is not okay," Xander replied loudly.

The door opened and Remus was surprised to see Anya right away. She looked beautiful as always. Her short strawberry blonde hair was slightly curled and she wore a lovely tight green dress that showed off her figure.

"Anya," he greeted her warmly as he stepped over the entrance. "Merlin, I've missed you."

**_SMACK!_ **Quicker than his eye could follow, Anya's hand slapped across his face and left a trail of stinging pain in its wake.

"Anya?" he gasped in shock. In reply, she just gave him an angry glare and stalked upstairs.

Connor raised his eyebrows. "I hope they like me better than they like you," he smirked.

* * *

A/N:

This just sorta happened – and I don't even like Connor! But you know me, I like to 'save' the characters that just need some extra love and therapy :)

Oh, and _had_ to bring Bobby in because that tattoo is the best. I just started watching Supernatural in March and don't know it as well, so I hope Bobby sounded okay… :)

Up next: Sirius confronts Willow, a boy's night, and a disastrous event!  
…And I promise more to come on Luke! Soon! *smacks naughty Musie for making preciousss readers wait*

**DISCLAIMER:** I DO NOT OWN SUPERNATURAL AND AM ONLY USING IT FOR MY OWN TWISTED PLEASURE. I DO NOT OWN BOBBY OR THOSE COOLIO TATTOOS, THAT WB-UPN-CW (whatever it's called!) DO, AND THAT KRIPKE DUDE.


	78. Of Hunters and Whores

Of Hunters and Whores

A/N: Major props to one of my favorite authors and readers, Greywizard , because he gave me the idea for the convo topic between Spike and Luna!

* * *

The next morning after Remus and Connor's arrival, the core members all met in the library on the second floor for a strategizing/breakfast session. The standard Scoobies – Buffy, Willow, Xander, Giles, Anya, Dawn, and Spike – were there as well as Faith, Robin, and Andrew. The two wizards, Sirius and Remus, were there – noticeably sitting away from their estranged beaus – along with Luna. In addition, Willow had asked that the senior potentials were there so Rona, Vi, and Kennedy also took up seats at the 'war' table.

Needless to say, it was an excellent thing they had magic on their side to make the table extend far enough to accommodate the sixteen people.

"Mmm, pass the cream cheese, please?" Buffy requested as she munched on a banana.

"Sure thing, Buffy," Sirius replied as he used a levitating charm to send the container towards the head of the table.

"That is so cool," Andrew sighed as he gave Sirius a yearning look.

"Hey, can somebody pass me the orange juice?" Rona asked as her eyes scanned the table for the pitcher.

"Ooh! Here ya go!" Dawn grinned. _"Wingardium Leviosa!"_ The pitcher sitting in front of her shakily rose an inch and then shot up so fast that most of the contents splashed onto the person sitting across from Dawn – Kennedy.

"Hey!" the older witch shouted as she jumped out of her chair and gave Dawn a murderous look while everyone in the room began laughing. "Can't you learn to freaking control that charm?"

Dawn gave her an innocent look and shrugged. "I'm sorry, Kennedy. For some reason I do great at everything else but still have trouble with levitation charms." When Kennedy looked away to do a cleansing spell, Dawn winked at Sirius and the wizard grinned like a giddy schoolboy.

Giles smiled as he finished the last of his pastry. "I must say, I am terribly relieved that we managed to store enough food. Who did this again?" he asked as he looked around the table.

"Oh! I did, Mr. Giles. Some of the potential slayers of vamp-ires and I went on a hunt… into all the abandoned grocery stores. It was a perilous mission but we managed to make it out unscathed and with a truck full of hot pockets and bagels and those little pastries you like!" Andrew beamed happily.

"Yes, well thank you A—" Giles glared further down the table where Dawn was attempting to serve more food using her wand. "Dawn, I do think we should create a new rule about no magic at the breakfast table, yes?"

Andrew sullenly stabbed his pancakes with his fork as he returned to his meal.

"But Gi-iles!" Dawn whined. "Remus and Sirius get to do it!"

"Yeah, but they've been practicing magic for longer than six months, Dawnie," Buffy pointed out with a smirk.

"Yeah, Squirt, this ain't Sea World – some of us don't want to sit in the splash zone," Faith grinned from her spot next to Buffy at the head of the table while Dawn just frowned and muttered to herself.

"Alright, everyone's just 'bout done eating, so let's get started," Buffy then stated in an official voice after swallowing the last of her bagel. "Things have been crazy since the vineyard fight and we haven't had a chance to properly meet yet. Now, everyone is here because Faith, Giles, and I thought it would be good to have a core group of people to discuss and strategize the deal with the First Evil.

"But before we start, Remus? You mind filling us in on what's going on in L.A. and why exactly that Connor kid showed up last night with you?"

"Ah," Remus said in surprise at being called on so suddenly. "Well, I went to L.A. two days ago—"

"—Why? So you could catch a plane back to stupid, bloody England?" Anya asked snidely as she crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair.

Remus frowned; automatically realizing that telling the truth would be very unwise right at the moment. "_No._ I left so the First couldn't turn me into a mindless animal hell-bent on killing you all," he replied in a dry tone that reeked of a verbal eye-roll.

"Anyway, I went to the Hyperion since Willow and Sirius had talked about Angel there and asked for help. Apparently they had just defeated a very powerful creature who had attempted world domination and Connor had gone missing. Wesley and I, after picking up a new wand, found him and I spent the night talking to the boy, who was very upset over the earlier battle."

"Aw, that's nice," cooed Vi – who had already found herself drawn to the broody male teenager like most of the other house's occupants.

"Yes," Remus grinned at the expression on Vi's face. "Anyways, Angel called up a Hunter friend of his, Bobby, who gave me a Devil's Trap tattoo that wards off demon possession. With this, the First won't be able to turn me anymore."

"You got a tattoo, Moony?" Sirius howled with laughter. "Oh, I wish James could see this! Responsible Prefect Remus Lupin with a bloody tattoo, that is classic," he smirked

"A Hunter?" Giles mused while the others laughed. "That is interesting. There are supposed to be quite a few in America, but I've never met any."

"Sure you have," Robin smiled secretly at the older man.

"Wait, _you're_ a Hunter?" Faith exclaimed. "Wait," she said in a softer voice as she glanced between Remus and Robin. "What the hell is a Hunter?"

"We're just normal people that hunt demons," Robin shrugged. "After growing up with my Watcher and knowing what I did about the underworld, there was no way I could live a normal life. So while I was in school and afterwards I Hunted wherever I lived; and traveled for special cases during summer breaks. There's a whole network – I've met Bobby a few times, although Hunters typically travel alone."

"Hot," Faith smirked.

"So what's the tattoo look like?" Kennedy asked curiously. "You sure it'll work?"

"I think so," Remus confirmed.

"Aw, don't be shy, Moony. Show us the tattoo!" Sirius teased.

Remus' eyes threw daggers at Sirius. "How about I not?" he rolled his eyes.

"C'mon Remus, stop makin' with the modesty," Buffy grinned at the werewolf's discomfort. "We want to see this tattoo. It's important we know these things."

Remus groaned internally because he knew he was never going to win this argument. "Fine," he sighed heavily as he unbuttoned his short-sleeve brown shirt and revealed the mark on his upper-left chest – a pentagram surrounded by sun-like flames.

"That's hot," Faith commented; enjoying the glare that Anya sent her way. Faith was of the opinion that both her new wizard friends were cool people and that both of their chicks just needed to calm down. If inciting a bit of jealousy did that, than so be it…Of course, that would definitely not work on Willow.

"Intriguing," Giles whispered as he peered closer. "I would be fascinated to learn more about that, later."

"May I touch it?" Luna asked in a soft voice from her spot to Remus' left; her eyes never wavering as they focused on the tattoo.

"Um, why Luna?" Remus asked as he began to feel slightly uncomfortable.

"It calls to me," she whispered softly as she continued her intense stare.

"Best let her do it, mate. Seers are a very touchy-feely lot," Spike suggested.

"Alright," Remus said in a puzzled tone.

She pressed a warm hand on his tattoo and drew in a long, gasping breath as her body when rigid. Her eyes turned white as they had in the vineyard and the Slayers jumped to their feet as they watched their Guardian in concern. Head thrown back, Luna then began speaking in an eerie, deeper, voice.  
_  
"Years ago when the world dawned,  
A Kwanza Bovu set his pawns._

Jealous of another,  
He placed evil in the hearts of brothers.  
Formed demons to hunt and kill,  
Leaving mankind a battle to fight uphill.

He sought to enter each man and child,  
And turn their hearts murderous and wild.

But the fathers of the Shadow Men,  
Brought together their kin.  
As a tribe they created the Devil's Trap,  
That was magicked to prevent mishap.

Battles were fought and the war eventually won,  
By the Shadow Men's daughters and their sons."

Luna stared to fall backwards but Spike moved with vampiric speed to catch her and placed the Guardian gently in her chair. "Ya alright there, pet?" Spike asked in concern.

"Fine," she said shakily as her large, watery blue eyes blinked open in alarm.

"Luna, what did you see?" Buffy asked as the room stared at Luna in curiosity.

Squeezing her eyes shut, the girl appeared to struggle to remember her vision. "Long ago, in the tribe of my foremothers, they fought A Kwanza Bovu and his legion of demons. They created this symbol," she gestured towards Remus' bare chest, "and used it to ward off possession because A Kwanza Bovu was possessing them in order to make them fight amongst themselves. Then…" Luna frowned and bit her lip as she trailed off.

"What is it, pet?" Spike prodded her.

"It…It had attempted to make itself solid again and there was a great battle, but the Sineya the First Slayer was able to trap it using this mark before she expelled him back to hell."

"How?" Buffy inquired; her eyes glowing at the possibility of an end to the First.

Luna rubbed her temples. "I don't know," she said softly. "I'm sorry."

There was a moment of silence as everyone took in Luna's words.

"S'alright, Crescent," Faith smiled at her. "We'll figure it out."

Buffy smiled at Faith; silently amused at how much her sister slayer had changed in the last couple weeks. Who would have thought that Faith would find herself in a leadership role? Or for that matter, who would have thought that she and Faith – besides small arguments – were working as a well-oiled team for once?

"Okay, well we'll just have to keep Luna's words in mind. Devil Trap good, A Kwanza Bovu bad. But before we debrief, Remus you never did tell us how Connor came to be here. Who is he? Some kid that works with Angel? I heard you say he was super strong."

Remus frowned in concern as he wondered why Buffy was unaware of Connor's existence. Vaguely he noticed Willow shaking her head 'no' fervently and Sirius giving him a 'look', but the words were already spilling out his mouth before he could stop them.

"Didn't you know? Connor is Angel's son. He's having problems back home and asked to come with me.

Buffy's mouth dropped, as did her glass of orange juice that spilled over the oak table. Giles gawked at Remus and then immediately began cleaning his glasses, as if that could help him see that Remus was joking. Xander just started laughing in incredulity, and Dawn and Spike joined him. Meanwhile, Faith just sat there with a straight face, Anya looked like she could care less, the potentials and Robin seemed confused, Luna didn't seem surprised, and Andrew looked like he had just gotten his book signed by William Shatner.

"Er," Remus looked around at them all; now noticing how Sirius was shaking his head at him and Willow had her face buried in her hands. "Didn't you lot know that?"

"You're joking, right? I mean, Angel is a _vampire_. He can't have _kids_!" Buffy practically screeched in alarm as her hands gripped the edges of the table.

"It was mystical mojo, Buff," Willow tried to explain.

Irritated hazel eyes honed in on Willow. "You _knew_ about this, Will?"

"Um." Willow gulped. "Sorta, when Sirius and I visited Angel we met Connor…but Fred had told me a while back."

"You mean you've known this for a while now?" Buffy asked in a quiet, betrayed voice.

Willow bit her lip and wrung her hands nervously. "Well, I didn't want to upset you!"

"How on earth did Angel manage to have a baby? With a human woman? I have heard of some Slavic vampires with that ability, but it's never been confirmed," Giles wondered out loud.

"Um, no. With Darla," Willow said with a wince as a hail of questions were hurled upon her. She held up her hands and quickly explained the craziness with Wolfram and Heart bringing Darla back, Drusilla vamping her, and Darla and Angel having a mystical child. Then she further described what Fred had told her about Connor's tumultuous upbringing.

"Wow. I can't believe I never knew," Buffy commented in a hurt voice.

"Damn. Do all of you people live such crazy lives?" Rona asked in amused outrage.

Xander chuckled. "Trust me, you haven't seen crazy yet. Remind me to tell you about the time Willow, Giles, and I fused together with Buffy's essence in a magical Super Slayer spell."

Rona raised an eyebrow. "Never mind," she drawled as she shook her head.

"Well, clearly we will need to help take the boy in," Giles stated. "By the sounds of it, he hasn't had a very stable life and this place is certainly not very stable—"

"—What do ya mean?" Xander grinned. "Isn't stability doing things on a regular schedule? We sleep, we eat, we play video games – okay, just some of us do that – and then we kill demons. Sounds stable to me."

Giles rolled his eyes. "Anyways, someone with Connor's skills set will be useful and hopefully we can be of use to him. It was good of you to bring him, Remus."

"So," Buffy clapped her hands to bring everyone's attention back together; an uncomfortable look on her face. "Let's get on with the debriefing and figure out where we are. Faith?"

"Okay," Faith smirked as she hefted the Slayer Scythe from it was leaning against her chair. "We picked up this bad boy thanks to Luna's intel in the secret place underneath the wine cellar. We're not exactly sure what it is except that it can make shish-kabob out of Preacher-eye and is good for the slicing and dicing. Luna's grandma said it was made by Guardians long ago, but we don't know much else."

"Luna?" Willow asked as she turned to the young girl next to her. "Do you know anything about it?"

"I'm afraid not," Luna shrugged. "Unfortunately without being trained, I have no idea of the details of my heritage. I know the Guardians are responsible for watching over the Slayers and that they are, in a way, our kin but I don't know anything else. Sorry," she apologized with a frown.

"Nothin' to be sorry 'bout, Crescent," Spike told her from his seat at Buffy's right-hand side. "You'll figure it out. After all, isn't your House full of the brainy types?" he smiled.

Remus and Sirius shared a grin – it always pleased them to hear Hogwarts mentioned.

"Yeah," Luna said shyly and she fiddled with her wand behind her ear.

"Alright, so Slayer Scythe is a mystery other than the First didn't want us to have it and it kills demons dead. Now, care to debrief on the battle, Xand?" Buffy asked her friend.

"Right, so, we all know that even after all our intense planning, we still got screwed over… And if it wasn't for Luna we might all have died. Since the portkeys took us into a trap, and the house wards came down and knocked Will out, and he disappeared, all signs point to Luke as a traitor."

Immediately the room filled with a loud buzzing noise as the fifteen occupants all began muttering words of outrage. The only one who did not speak was Buffy, who was looking quite hurt and guilty at the moment. She felt guilty for allowing the man into the circle of trust and hurt that once again she had been attracted to the evil guy.

"Now, hold on!" Giles shouted above the din of voices as he gestured for quiet. "I told a few of you this, but Secretary Asp showed up during the memorial service saying that Luke never contacted her."

"Duh! Cause wizard boy made with the mad get-a-way!" Dawn grumbled irritably.

"She also said that she believes he is innocent and that maybe some wizard used polyjuice potion or the Imperius Curse. Now, I'm not sure if what she says is true. After all, she could easily be covering for Luke and trying to confuse us if she's also working for the First. Or, she could just be an aunt wearing her blinders when she looks at her favorite nephew. However, after an intense amount of thought, I believe we should take her words into consideration," Giles stated.

"Yeah, but Giles, who could have done it?" Willow asked thoughtfully. "I mean, what with Amy in jail and, ah… Well, you know, with what happened to Lucius and Alecto," she said the last words very quickly as a painful, guilty look crossed her face.

"Yes, that is a good point," Giles sighed and began cleaning his glasses.

"Well, Mad Dog, did you see any other wizards 'sides those three when they kidnapped you?" Faith asked as she cracked her knuckles and stretched.

Sirius felt Willow glare at him, likely disliking the Faith exchange – which too damn bad for her because she was the one who was ignoring him! – and answered faith's question with a frown. "Honestly, that period of time," Sirius winced as he remembered the pain of Alecto cutting into him, "is all very fuzzy for me. I wasn't quite with it and mostly only get flashes of pain or the curses they used on me."

"Me personally? I could tell Luke was a wanker and it makes sense that the wannabe James Bond turned out to be rotten," Spike snorted.

"Yeah, I have to agree with Spike," Kennedy spoke up. "When we met to set up the portkeys for the vineyard battle something seemed _off_ about him," she frowned.

"What do you mean?" Buffy inquired.

Kennedy shrugged. "I'm not sure. At the time he seemed really nervous but I just thought it was about the battle, ya know? But knowing that someone betrayed us… Well, it kinda makes sense now. I just wish," she said in a softer voice, "that I could have figured it out beforehand."

Sirius found himself involuntarily clenching his wand under the table as Willow wrapped an arm around Kennedy's shoulders and patted her arm. Willow had been bloody evading him the last two days but by Merlin he was going to have a nice chat with her after the meeting. He couldn't believe that she was flirting with Kennedy just to make him jealous!

"It's alright, Ken," Willow said soothingly. "You couldn't have known."

"Yeah, Kennedy, don't worry about it. He fooled us all," Buffy added glumly.

With a sigh, Buffy changed gears and once more used her 'general' voice. "So Luke is probably still out there working for the First and we know there are an army of ubervamps underneath the seal, but at least Caleb is dead. Since Caleb seemed like he was the big gun, I'm thinking we might be okay for a while. However, we _have_ to figure out how to stop the First – once and for all."

For the next two hours they all offered up various suggestions and ideas but nothing seemed to stick. After all, how could they go about defeating a legion of almost indestructible vamps and an intangible evil object?

* * *

Once the meeting was dismissed, Luna pulled Spike aside as everyone began getting up. "Spike, do you have a moment?" she asked with wide eyes.

"Sure, Crescent," he smiled kindly. "What's up?"

Glancing around to make sure no one was listening, she leaned towards him. "I've dreamed of former slayers before, but last night I dreamed of one from the 1970s."

"Oh, yeah?" Spike asked with furrowed brows. "What happened?"

"Her name was Nikki and… you killed her," Luna answered him quietly.

A painful look crossed Spike's face as he ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry you had to see that, Crescent. I was a bad man then."

She laid a small hand over his arm. "I know," she said simply. "But you're not a bad man anymore and that's why I need to tell you this. That slayer's full name was Nikki Wood and she had a son."

Spike's eyes widened as his head jerked up to look at Robin Wood, who was currently in discussion with Giles. "You don't mean…No, that can't be true," he said breathlessly. "I didn't even know she had a kid – not that it would have mattered if I had known," Spike shrugged guiltily.

"It's true," Luna nodded.

Spike smiled grimly as he realized everything. "So the boy knows, doesn't he? It's why he such a royal prick to me—Ah, sorry about cursing, Crescent."

Luna smiled slightly; already so used to Spike's varied vocabulary. "That's alright. Anyways, I think you should stop wearing your leather duster – it was Nikki's, wasn't it? I saw her wearing it in the dream."

"But…" Spike's mouth dropped in a mixture of surprise and disappointment. "I love that duster – it's a part of me!"

"You may love it but to Robin that's a slap in the face every time you wear it," Luna pointedly reminded him. "Anyways, you should consider it," she sighed. "I fear in the future we will truly need everyone to work together and have good relationships."

Spike just stared at the young Guardian –surprised as always to hear such a young creature say such wise things. "I'll think 'bout it, Crescent," he agreed with a nod and pursed lips.

* * *

Sirius waited outside for Willow to come out and gestured for Remus to go on without him. "I'll meet up with you later Moony. This time I'm going to make her talk to me," he said in a determined voice.

Remus gave him a sad smile. "Well, good luck Padfoot. I hope it goes better than any of mine and Anya's conversations."

"Well, you were the one to teach her those hexes for DADA," Sirius smirked.

Cuffing him on the back of the head, Remus glared at him. "Smart ass."

"Furball," Sirius replied with a chuckle.

Remus just rolled his eyes and walked down the hallway to his room. Sirius felt bad that Moony was on the outs with Anya but he felt bad for the bird as well – she had bloody cried after reading Remus' letter after all.

"Oh, well we should definitely try that ball of sunlight again!" he heard Kennedy say eagerly inside the library. "I mean, sure, it hasn't worked yet but Amy probably just messed up our focus."

"You're probably right. I mean, it's such a good idea and I really think that if we maybe use a different language we could get it. Latin does get overused, after all," Willow replied.

"Well I think it's just cool that we're able to mesh our different styles of magic. Oh, and I really like learning earth magic – there's a lot of power in it that I had never realized before!"

"Cool. I'm glad you like it. I have to say, I've never really thought to do spells with any wizarding people before but it really does work between us, doesn't it?"

"Totally." Sirius could practically _hear_ the smirk in Kennedy's voice. Stupid mangy slag.

"Willow," he greeted her as she walked through the door.

"Sirius!" she stared at him in alarm. "Um, what do you want?"

"What do I want?" he scoffed, unable to help but immediately feeling defensive. "You've been avoiding me, Willow. We need to talk."

Willow shared a look with Kennedy and Sirius had to truly fight not to hex the potential slayer good and proper.

"I think we've done enough talking, Sirius," she told him as she crossed her arms over her chest.

His eyes narrowed as he stared at Willow's stony expression and Kennedy's knowing smirk. "No, we haven't, Willow. Now, will you please come with me so we can talk in, _private_?"

Willow's arms went to her side as she balled her fists in anger. "I'm sorry Sirius, but it's done - _we're_ done."

Time seemed to stop for a moment as he looked deep into Willow's flashing green eyes. Done? They were done? He knew they had a bad fight… but done? At once, it felt like a hippogriff was laying on his chest and Sirius couldn't breathe for a moment. His throat dried and he drew in a gasping breath as he stared at Willow in bewilderment.

"Done?" was all he could say.

"Yes." Never once did her expression falter and Sirius couldn't believe that the Willow Rosenberg he knew could discard him so easily. Then his eyes were drawn to Kennedy's smirk. It was her.

"Why? Did _she_ put you up to this? Dammit, Willow! Kennedy's been trying to come between us since the beginning! Don't you dare let her use you like this!"

Willow stepped forward and jabbed a finger into his chest. "Why? Why is she putting me up to this? You don't think I can't make a decision on my own? Look, Sirius, _you_ were the one who decided not to trust me and, honestly, I've been doing _a lot_ of thinking and I just don't think we're right for each other.

"As for Kennedy – there you go again being paranoid! She's my best friend, so just lay off!" she shouted angrily into his face.

"Dammit Willow! I bloody _love_ you!" he huffed out heatedly. "This slag's got you so twisted you're not even thinking straight! Listen, I'm sorry about Faith, but you can't let such a minor thing be held against me!" he half-shouted, half-pleaded as he cupped her cheek

Her lips pursed and she pushed aside his hand. "I'm sorry, Sirius. It's over." Then she spun and began rushing to her bedroom, with Kennedy following.

Leaving Sirius just standing there, wondering, '_Where did everything go so wrong?_'

* * *

**A/N:**

.Alas! Trouble is still brewing for our favorite couple! And to answer Sirius' question of where everything went wrong… Well, I think you can probably figure that out...

_Next up: The Man Cave!_

Thanks to my darling reviewers; especially the people who review every chapter or almost every chapter! Y'all are too wonderful for words! If the COAs had a category for Most Kick-Ass Reviewer, I would totally nominate you all *grins and gives you a basket full of cookies*

***"Hey!" the older witch shouted as she jumped out of her chair and gave Dawn a murderous look while everyone in the room began laughing. "Can't you learn to freaking control that charm?"  
- In Chapter 43 Dawn was also involved in a levitation charm 'accident' with Kennedy ;)

***Regarding Hunters: In my 'verse' I have a certain background for them in my mind…Not sure if that will get/need to be explored in this story, but don't be surprised if it comes up again.


	79. The Man Cave

**The Man Cave**

**A/N: **

Thanks to Eureka , MarcusSLazarus , and mellusene , for issuing a rec! (And an extra special thanks to mellusene because they long ago rec'd my first story A Vampire Slayer in Middle Earth :)

**Warning:** There is some drinking in this chapter so remember, you dear underagers- don't drink until what is legally allowed in your state! Oh, and because of that there will be intentional spelling errors :)  
_This message was brought to you by Musie, who regrettably loves to get her characters good and sloshed every once in a while! :) _

Also, mad thanks to Greywizard for beta-ing this chapter and agreeing to beta the remaining chapters of this story. I always appreciate his insight and help!

Also, voting has started at the SunnyD Awards ! [.]  
So please check out Willow's Thief in the following categories:  
*Best Crossover Book  
*Best Crossover Book Pairing  
*Best Plot  
*Best Romance  
*Best Unfinished

ALSO, a fellow TtH author and friend has been nominated at the SunnyDs so please check out DeepBlueJoy! Voting occurs from August 1-August 30.

* * *

Many hours later, after some intense training sessions with Dawn and Luna, Sirius and Remus had retired to the den on the second floor. The room had been created by Sirius and Remus' memories of the Gryffindor tower and it was an explosion of their house colors. Both men had thrown themselves into their work with the girls today to try to escape their own thoughts, but now they were alone without any distraction in their depressed state.

"I mean," Sirius said from out of nowhere, "can you _believe_ she said that to me?"

Remus shrugged and slouched farther in his chair. "I'm sorry, mate. That was utterly mad of her."

Sirius just went on silently fuming.

Loud screaming girlish laughter could be heard outside the door and both men rolled their eyes – in a house with so many teenage girls, it was impossible to find a quiet moment.

Suddenly the door banged open and Spike hurriedly shut it. "Bloody hell," he said to the wizards. "It's like those girls are in need of some serious sedatives."

Sirius smirked. "Trying to hide?"

"Course," Spike smirked as he pulled a large bottle of vodka out of his jacket. "Stole this from the Russian potential; nothin' better than a good bottle of pure ninety proof Vodka."

"Mmm, vode-ka," Sirius smiled as he remembered meeting the Russian potential, Yelena, and hearing about the bottle from her hometown.

"Aren't you supposed to be good?" Remus asked with an amused smile. "Isn't stealing against the rules?"

"Hey, now. I'm just trying to be proper, lad. See, the girl could drink in Russia, but she's underage here in the States, so I'm just confiscatin' it," Spike smirked.

"Nice," Sirius chuckled in approval.

"Interested in sharing, Spike? I could bloody use a drink," Remus stated in a tired voice.

Spike took in the wizard's disheveled clothes and hair. "Lemme guess, the missus is mad at you for taking off like a bat outta hell?"

Remus glared. "I had to bloody leave; foolish woman," he muttered. "Besides, Anya very clearly told me before I left that we were not together and has given off several hints that she bloody prefers Xander. But now, she's all angry at me and I don't even get why."

Raising his brows at Remus' tirade, Spike silently offered up the bottle.

"Hold on," Sirius grinned. "If we're going to get smashed then we need more than that." Waving his wand and saying a spell, he smiled triumphantly at the other two men. "Automatic refilling charm!" he explained.

"Good thinking, Padfoot," Remus said as he took a shot straight from the bottle.

"Gotta say, that magic of yours sure does come in handy," Spike laughed as he took the bottle from Remus and took a swig.

"Wait, wait, here. Let me transfigure something into cups." After a few moments, Remus had created three cups for them.

The door opened again and Giles stalked in. "Who's here—Oh, just you lot. Thank god. The girls are exceedingly hyper today because Faith is hosting a party later on in the living room tonight to keep the girls' spirits up."

"Wondered why I kept hearing the pitter-patter of teenage feet up and down the stairs," Sirius remarked as he took a sip of his drink.

"I mean, I am fine with the girls letting off some steam, but it would it kill them to try to keep it under ten decibels?" Giles griped as he sat down on an unoccupied chair.

"Well, welcome to our momentary refuge, Ripper. You want a drink?"

"Don't call me Ripper," Giles scowled at Spike. "And, ah, what is it that you are drinking?" he asked with an interested look.

"Vodka that Russian bird brought with her," Spike grinned as he waved the bottle temptingly towards Giles, in almost an after-school special type way.

Giles looked hesitant. "Aw, c'mon, Ripper," Spike cajoled.

"Don't call me that," Giles ordered him irritably as he grabbed the bottle and Remus silently offered him a newly conjured glass.

The door to the unofficially home-away-from-home 'Gryffindor' den opened again and Andrew stumbled in carrying a thick binder. "Oh, thank Merlin, it's only you guys!" he called out dramatically as he sat cross-legged on the floor next to Sirius' chair.

Sirius raised an eyebrow and mouthed at Remus, 'Thank Merlin?', causing Remus to bite back a smile.

"Andrew," Giles said in a tired voice. "I am trying to find a quiet refuge from those girls, so if you have come here to incessantly prattle on about dragons inside dungeons, then please vacate."

Andrew's eyes widened as he clutched his binder close to his chest. "Oh, no worries, Mr. Giles! I just have been trying to sort through my Magic cards and build new decks; but the girls downstairs in the living room were making fun of it, so I left. I'll be quiet, promise," he said eagerly.

Remus gave the younger man a kind look, once more remembering what it was like to be young and on the outskirts of 'normal' society. "You can feel free to build your decks here, Andrew. And don't mind them – teenage girls are quite easily the least rational human being on the planet," he smiled.

"Thanks, Mr. Lupin!" Andrew beamed before he began quietly taking out his cards and examining them.

Spike smirked and took another sip. "Oh, you're such a nice guy, _Mr._ Lupin."

Remus rolled his eyes and poured himself another drink.

Once again, the door opened and Robin walked inside looked positively ragged. "Oh, good, there you guys are. Faith wanted to know if she could get some wizarding help for her party downstairs; said she needed decorations or something."

"Don't tell me the slayer's got you as an errand boy?" Spike cracked.

"No," Robin sneered. "I'm just tying to help those girls take a break from everything. Besides, it's sorta in my job description – high school principal, remember?"

"Puttin' the pal in principal," Sirius smirked. "Come on, Robin, blow off the party planning and come have a drink?"

Now Robin looked interested. "What is it?"

"Sweet Russian Vodka," Giles smiled serenely as he took another sip of the ice cold beverage.

Robin glanced back at the door and shrugged. "I'll take you guys up on that," he smiled as Sirius handed him a glass.

"Come on, in here!" they heard Xander shout frantically. "No girls are inside."

A moment later, the door burst open to reveal a harried looking Connor and a grinning Xander who slammed and locked the door.

"Whew! Almost didn't think we were going to make it," Xander laughed as he gently elbowed Connor in the ribs. Then Xander laughed some more as he took in the sight of every male Summers' home resident in the room.

"What is this, the Man Cave?" Xander questioned with a grin.

"Oh, come now. We need a better name than that," Remus said with a matching grin.

"We're just trying to get away from all the females and drown our sorrows with delicious vodka. What are you lot up to?" Sirius called out in amusement.

"Those poor girls are trying to teach Connor dance moves in preparation for tonight," Xander smirked as he stole a spot on the couch. "And they said he has to dance with all three dozen girls," he teased.

"Those girls are _crazy_!" Connor moaned as he plopped down next to Xander. "I thought Quor-Toth was bad!"

"There, there," Xander comforted with a smile as he patted the teenager on the back. "I feel your pain. Once. in high school. a love spell went wrong and every woman was chasing me – including Buffy's mom and a vampire named Drusilla."

Spike glared at Xander once he remembered that.

"You should embrace it, m'boy!" Sirius grinned. "Trust me, there is nothing like have dozens of girls chasing after you."

"Let me guess – you had a love spell done too?" Connor asked.

"Nope," Sirius winked. "I was just _quite_ the ladies man back then."

Remus rolled his eyes and Spike snorted loudly. "Overheard your talk with Willow; doesn't look like you're the ladies man anymore. Plus, saw her sportin' a pretty 'lil ring that Kennedy bird gave her."

His eyes widened as he learned that Kennedy was giving his girlfriend (not his ex-girlfriend, no matter what Willow may think – she was just angry right now and didn't know what she was say) a gift. "Shut it, Spike." Sirius narrowed his eyes and waved his wand.

"Oi! What did you do to me?" Spike shouted as everyone began laughing loudly. "What?" the vampire looked all around and at his clothes.

"Well… I'd tell you to go check out your reflection but you don't have one, so just feel the top of your head," Xander guffawed.

Spike frowned and patted his head. His eyes widened in alarm as he yanked a hair out and inspected it. "Bloody hell, wizard. Do not tell me that you just gave me ponce hair!"

Sirius shrugged and smirked at the stricken vampire who now had the exact same gelled black hair as Angel. "Okay. I did not give you ponce hair."

Growling, Spike gave Sirius an angry gesture. "Fix it or I'll switch from vodka to soddin' wizard blood."

"I can't believe he has my dad's hair," Connor snickered. "God, I hate his hair – it always reminds me of these spiny demons I fought in Quor-Toth."

"Yeah, I almost forget how stupid Dead Boy's hair was," Xander mused thoughtfully.

"Dead Boy?" Connor asked.

"Ah, your, um, dad I guess," Xander clarified sheepishly. "Sorry, I'm still forgetting that Angel's your dad."

"It's okay," Connor shrugged as he looked at the floor. "I usually forget, too."

"Right, can we get back to more important things," Spike asked bitterly. "Like my BLOODY HAIR?"

Sirius snickered and fixed Spike's hair. "Wow, you really have some issues with him, don't you?" he grinned.

"You don't like my dad?" Connor asked Spike hesitantly.

Spike paused and raised an eyebrow. "Er, me and your dear 'ol dad have got some issues, kiddo. Frankly, I think he's a great wanker—"

"—Spike," Giles gently admonished.

"—But that's only 'cause I've known him so bloody long. He's my grand-sire," Spike explained after rolling his eyes at Connor.

"Oh!" Connor exclaimed in surprise. "So, you have a soul because you're related to him."

"Bloody hell, no!" Spike said scornfully. "Your dad's got one thanks to a curse – I've got one because I fought for it in Africa and was given it."

Xander then burst out laughing and the other seven males looked at him strangely.

"What?" Spike asked suspiciously.

"I just—" Xander held his stomach because he was laughing so hard. "I just realized that Connor is your uncle!"

Connor and Spike stared at each other in alarm as the rest of the group began chuckling.

"Oh, bloody hell," Spike rolled his eyes as he downed another glass.

A slow smile formed on Connor's face as he looked at the irate vampire. "Wow. So I'm like your uncle?"

Spike grimaced. "No. I won't be havin' a bloody teenager be my uncle"

"Aw, come on, Spike. You better show him proper respect and maybe he'll take you to the circus someday!" Sirius cracked as the room filled with laughter.

"You better watch your back, wizard man," Spike mock-warned as he took another gulp. "Now, pass me the vodka!"

The next two hours passed remarkably quickly for the eight men. Thanks to Sirius' refilling charm, none of them were aware of just how much they were drinking – except possibly Xander, Connor, and Andrew, who did not indulge in any drinks. Conversation was steady as they each contributed to the main conversation or engaged in side conversations. Of course, with each drink consumed, most of their speech tended to become louder and more slurred.

"Xander," Remus said with a forlorn look at one point. "I just don't bloody understand. Not too long ago Anya was essentially telling me we were no more than friends with benefits and that she didn't want a relationship, and now, she's so angry because I left for a _day_. Plus, she still acts like she cares for you!"

"Wha—What?" the magical-eyed man sputtered. "No, she doesn't, Remus. Why do you think that?"

"Well, she said she didn't want to be in a relationship because you left her and then she went and got you that eye—not that I don't want you to not have an eye!" he quickly explained.

"Remus, trust me. Anya and I are no more; we even talked the night you left. You just really hurt her. I admit, it's my fault why it affected her so much with you, but since I left her at the alter, I think that messed with her," Xander frowned. "But trust me, she cares for you a lot - she was crying after you left."

"Hmmm," was all Remus could say as he swallowed more burning liquid.

On at the other side of the den, Spike was telling Connor stories of his dad.

"Trust me, kiddo, your dad – while a stupid ponce – is a good guy," he said grudgingly. "Minute he got the soul of his, he turned all boring and stopped eating babies straight away!" Spike nodded as he held up a slightly swaying finger.

"So you knew my mother, Darla, too?"

"Oh, I knew her," Spike grinned as a soft look came into his eyes. Quickly, he shook off old, quite pleasurable memories, and wiped the smile off his face. "'Course, I bet she was a lot different when she had you; I never knew her when she had a soul."

"Bet you liked that, didn't you?" interrupted Robin's deep voice.

"Huh?" Spike was confused.

"I bet you liked it back when you all were evil and didn't have souls – enjoyed all the killing you did," Robin stated with a hint of malice as he took another sip of his vodka.

Spike opened his mouth to make a retort and then shut it as he took a closer look at Robin Wood. Yes, he could see some of Nikki in the boy – a vampire never did forget a slayer that he killed, after all. Suddenly, he felt his conscience tugging at him to do the right thing and follow Luna's advice – and maybe take it a step further. "I'll be right back," he promised; leaving a very confused principal and teenager staring at his retreat.

Minutes later, he appeared back in the 'Man Cave' and approached Robin. "Look," he said as he stared the man right in his eyes. "Luna informed me today that you're Nikki's son."

Robin's gaze hardened and his back stiffened. "Yeah, what about it? You want to kill me now, too?"

"No, you idiot," Spike scoffed. "In case you haven't noticed, I've got a bloody soul now. I ain't like I used to be. More so, I… I mourn what I did do in the past. Yeah, I'm a vampire, but I know what I did wasn't right. And, bollocks, if you had told me who you were, I might not have been such an ass as to wear your dead mum's coat."

Robin's gaze didn't soften.

"Here," Spike sighed as he thrust his leather duster into Robin's arms. "It's yours now, alright?"

Robin glanced at the jacket and then back at Spike; as did the other surprised Man Cave inhabitants. "You… You're giving this to me?" he asked in a perplexed way.

"Yeah, okay?" Spike answered; clearly uncomfortable as he stepped from one foot to the next. "Not gonna apologize for what happened, 'cause it wasn't really me who did it, but I can at least give you your mum's coat."

"Thanks… Spike," Robin said; still taken aback at Spike's actions.

"Yeah, well if anyone asks, I just did it 'cause I was drunk, alright?" Spike said as he turned his back and went to get another glass.

Later on, Connor and Andrew could be found sitting cross-legged near the fireplace going through Andrew's 'Magic' binder. The two socially-awkward males had begun an awkward conversation that subsequently led to Andrew teaching Andrew about 'Magic: The Gathering' and Connor remarking on how so many of the creatures resembled things he had killed at one point or another.

After almost two hours, Sirius could be found bemoaning the tragedies of his fallout with Willow to both Xander and Giles.

"I jus-s-st don't get it. I mean, bollocks! We love each other. Why'sss sshe got to do this to me?"

Xander and Giles shared a look. "Maybe Willow just needs some time to cool off," Xander suggested to the wizard.

"It iss rather odd that Willow is being ssso irrational," Giles slurred slightly; slightly annoyed that his tolerance level was nothing like it had been when he was young.

"I know! It's that sshtupid schlag Kennedy's fault," Sirius grumbled. "I tried telling Willow she was after her but nooo! She jusst called me crazy. And it's not just me – Spike loves Buffy but she won't be with him and Anya's angrier than a losing Quidditch fan at Remus. We're bloody cursed!"

Sirius eyed Xander. "How's Tonkss? I hope you don't have the cursse, either, Xander."

A smile quickly came to Xander's face. "She's good; we're good, actually. Well," he frowned, "about as good as two people can be living on opposite ends of the earth and exchanging letters and occasional phone calls."

"Good," Sirius said strongly as he clapped a hand on Xander's shoulder. "Cause I like you, Xander. And I love Tonks 'cause sshe's my little cousin. So I hope you kids can make a go of it!" he smiled widely.

"Here, here!" Remus added merrily with pinked cheeks from a few chairs down; evidently overhearing their conversation. "To the one possssible winning relationship formed in Sunnydale!"

All the men raised their glasses – well, Connor and Andrew raised their cards – and cheered.

"You soddin' wankers," Spike scoffed. "I know why I don't have my girl, but you two could have yours. Why are you spending time with us lot and not groveling at your girls' feet?"

Sirius and Remus shared a look.

"Dammit, you are absholutely rrright!" Sirius said as he stood up and raised his fist in the air. "I'm going to grab Willow all manly-like and kissssh her until she remembers why she lovess me! And then she'll forget all about that sschlag Kennedy!"

Remus took one more shot of courage and stood up as well. "That'sh right! Damn it all to hell – I'm going to tell Anya I love her! And if ssshe wants to be mad at me, well, then," Remus' brain struggled to find the right words. "Well then, I'll just make her not be mad!"

And with that, both men boldly walked out of the Man Cave with a roar of male cheers left in their wake.

* * *

Quickly after exiting the Man Cave, Remus and Sirius shook hands and went off in search of their women. Remus went down the stairs, sure that Anya would be with Faith and the other girls, while Sirius decided to check out Willow's room first.

Briefly, he considered knocking, but realized that in her current state of mind Willow would never open the door for him, anyways. So, instead, he quietly unlocked the door with a spell and flung it open.

And then his heart stopped as he immediately sobered up.

* * *

**A/N:**

I figured the menfolk of Buffy never get enough love… So here was my tribute to them! …Plus, ya know, some closure for Robin and making sure the two most socially awkward people in the entire Buffyverse got a chance to hang out ;)

**Quor-Toth: The demon dimension that Connor grew up in


	80. Love, or Something Like It

Love, or Something Like It

**A/N: **

Mad thanks to Greywizard for beta-ing this chapter and agreeing to beta the remaining chapters of this story. I always appreciate his insight and help!

A final reminder that voting has started at the SunnyD Awards !  
So please check out Willow's Thief in the following categories:  
*Best Crossover Book, Best Crossover Book Pairing, Best Plot, Best Romance, Best Unfinished

And finally…. I know, I know. You all hate me for the cruel things I am doing. And soon, you are really going to hate me. Well, maybe love/hate me…

But I love you!

_**The soundtrack to this chapter is __"My Love" by Sia __,  
The song goes well with the chapter (just don't really listen to the lyrics since they don't really apply, but the overall tone is great!) _

* * *

Remus Lupin bounded down the stairs as quickly as a heavily intoxicated werewolf could. Hearing Xander's words of confirmation that there was nothing between those two former fiancées and that she cared for Remus had given him a surge of bravery to finally make her listen to him tell her his true feelings.

Of course, it would be factual to say that part of his courage stemmed from excessive amounts of vodka.

Remembering that, he quickly did a spell to freshen his breath and fix his hair and rumpled clothes. After all, he didn't want to scare the woman away! Then, taking a deep breath, he walked out into the living room where dozens of girls were dancing to loud hippity-hop music, or whatever it was called. Two of them spied him and began shrieking.

"Remus! Do you know where Connor is? We can't find him at all!" Vi said as she hopped from foot to foot.

Well, of course she couldn't find him. Remus had come up with an idea to set up an anti-teenage girl repellent around their 'Man Cave' – similar to repelling muggles away from magical locations – to relieve Connor of his anxiety. Not to mention, that spell gave all the men in the house a peaceful place to think – and drink.

"Yeah, Vi needs a partner to grind with!" Rona said cheekily.

Vi immediately blushed and lightly punched her friend in the shoulder.

"What?" Rona said innocently. "You dance pretty good for a white girl; you can show that boy some moves," she grinned.

"Rona!" Vi rolled her eyes. "I swear," she muttered with an embarrassed smile

"Sorry, girls. I have no idea where he is," Remus lied. Immediately, they both let out disappointed sighs.

"But do you know where Anya is?"

"Suuure, she's with Buffy in the kitchen making margaritas for her and Faith," Rona told him with a wink; damn teenage girls and their constant interest in the romantic relationships between the adults of the house.

"Great, thanks," he said as he resolutely marched towards the kitchen, suddenly wishing he had taken just one more shot of vodka to numb the pain in case Anya decided to spurn his advances.

He found Anya, Buffy, and Faith in the kitchen, just as Rona had said. Faith was sitting on the kitchen counter with a tall glass of a frozen pink margarita while Anya was pouring more of her concoction in her cup. Buffy, meanwhile, was sitting cross-legged at the kitchen table and speaking animatedly about something clearly irritating her.

"I mean, of all the stupid things! Hello! Sex equals evil! So why, of all people would he _especially_ have sex with freaking Darla, the vamp chick who tried to kill me?" Buffy huffed as she took a quick sip of her pop.

"But he didn't turn evil," Faith pointed out.

"Still," Buffy pouted stubbornly. "I'm just pissed that he did something so stupid."

"Are you angry because he had sex with someone else, or that he had a kid with someone else, when back when you were in high school you wanted his fanged babies?" Anya asked with a shrug as she sat down next to Buffy.

His nerve faltering, Remus hid behind the wall and peered past the doorframe. He knew he should just march in there and demand that Anya have a conversation with him, but with the two other women as potential witnesses, he began to feel like an idiot. Suddenly, he felt himself sober up as his anxiety heightened.

"Anya!" Buffy let out a startled cry at the ex-demon's rather blunt comment.

"She's got a point, B," Faith said with a raised eyebrow.

"It's not like that," Buffy said thinly as she crossed her arms.

"Really?" Faith said after a moment of silence.

"Okay, _maybe_ both and maybe more so, the latter," Buffy burst out with rolled eyes.

"But you don't love Angel anymore, so why does it matter?" Anya asked.

"Well, because," Buffy shrugged. "I mean, a part of me will always love him, ya know? First love and all that."

"But now you love Spike, so why are you so hung up on it?" Anya said matter-of-factly.

Buffy began choking on her drink. "Anya! I don't—I don't love Spike," she lowered her voice. "We're not like that."

"Is that why you wanted to make with the groiny with that wizard-turned-traitor dude?" Faith asked with a leer. "Trying to distract yourself?"

"Whoa," Buffy threw up a hand. "First off, I wasn't trying to distract myself. Second, I did not want to get _groiny_ with him. I just, you know, he flirted all the time and after a while, I thought he might not be a bad choice. I mean, he's human but extra special, so he gets the slayer gig, plus it was working out so well for you and Willow."

"Yeah right," Anya snorted. "Willow and Sirius had a huge fight and it's pretty evident she's attracted to Kennedy—"

"What?" screeched Buffy and Faith – and Remus had to hold himself back from shouting as well.

"Well, duh. They've always spent a lot of time together but they've been making with the  
lusty looks these last couple days. Willow's probably reverting back into a lesbian again," Anya shrugged.

"Dude, that _sucks_ for Mad Dog," Faith groaned. "Kennedy is such a brat."

"Yes, and Remus obviously has just been another mistake for me so as you can see, Buffy, these wizards are clearly bad news," Anya nodded grimly.

Remus suddenly felt like a bludger in the middle of a particularly vicious Quidditch match. She thought they were a _mistake_.

"You know, Anya, I'm sure he didn't mean anything personal when he left. I mean, think about it – he _was_ just trying to keep us safe," Buffy reassured her.

"Yeah, 'cause homicidal werewolves are hard to housetrain," Faith grinned.

"So? We had to keep _your_ homicidal vampire here," Anya rolled her eyes. "It's just stupid and I'm tired of men thinking they can leave me all the time," she added in a sadder voice that gave Remus that swell of courage that he needed.

"Anya, I never wanted to leave you," he stated earnestly as he stepped into the kitchen; catching all three women by surprise.

"Remus! Were you spying on me?" Anya asked as she jumped up and placed her hands on her hips.

"Uh…No?" he said, mentally smacking his alcohol-addled brain for not reacting faster. "Listen, I'm sorry, but I would have rather died than accidentally hurt you, or anyone else for that matter."

"So?" Anya said in a hard voice as she crossed her arms. Remus was highly relieved that, unlike previous conversation attempts since he returned, she wasn't hexing him yet. "Dammit, Remus, we could have just locked you in the basement with some manacles or something, you didn't have to leave!" she added in a hurt, exasperated voice.

Faith and Buffy traded looks before silently slinking past Remus and out of the kitchen.

Remus walked up and grabbed her hands. "Anya, I panicked. I didn't think. Besides, even Spike was able to hurt people while he was here and I—I couldn't be responsible for anymore deaths," he said in a bitter tone. "I had already done enough."

"Well, that's selfish!" she said as she snatched her hands away from him.

"Selfish?" he asked with a raised brow. "How in Merlin's name was that selfish?"

"Because! Because you could have talked to me first. But noooo, you just simply left like I didn't matter," she replied with tears sparkling in her eyes.

"Anya," he said in a hushed voice as he wrapped one arm around her and used his other hand to gently wipe away the tear that had fallen. "Good god woman, you matter so much to me that it's scary."

"I—I do?" she asked hesitantly. "Then why did you leave me?" she asked in a small voice.

"Because I was afraid. Afraid of hurting you and, yes, also afraid of loving you. I thought I cared for you more than you did for me, plus I was afraid you felt something for Xander," Remus admitted.

A weak laugh escaped her trembling lips. "Well, that's just stupid."

"Is it?" Remus asked, him being the one who needed reassurance now. "You said you didn't want a relationship with me."

Anya laid a hand on his chest and closed her eyes briefly. "Xander and I are only friends now and I guess I did say that… But only because I was scared. I don't want to be hurt again – but then you did hurt me."

She looked away then and it felt like daggers were thrust through his heart at seeing her in pain. Not just any pain, but pain he caused her. "Merlin, Anya. If I could take it back I would. I love you," he said

Her head whipped around as she gave him a startled look. "What?"

Remus knew there was no going back now. "Everything I wrote in my letter was true – you truly _are_ like no other woman I've ever met. At first, I found you exasperating but only because you hit nerves within me that made me feel out of sorts. Soon, after we began spending more time together, I realized just how amazing you are. Brave enough to always speak your mind, kind even though you pretend you're not, funny, brilliant, and beautiful," he confessed earnestly

Anya was staring at him like she had never seen him before. Her eyes raked over his features and she trembled slightly as a shiver ran through her.

"Please forgive me," he said quietly as he smoothed a strand of hair behind her ear.

She smiled then, and it felt like Remus could breathe again. "Okay then."

Remus knew he was grinning like an idiot, but he didn't care.

"Thank Merlin," he whispered before he drew Anya up for a kiss that left them both breathless.

* * *

After an hour of attempting the sunlight spell later that evening, Kennedy finally looked at Willow in concern. "Will? What's up? You don't really seem with it."

"Oh, sorry," Willow shrugged. "I just don't feel good," she answered evasively; mostly because not even she could explain what she was feeling right now.

They were sitting cross-legged across from each other in Willow's queen-sized bed with several sheets of paper filled with half-written spells in front of them. Kennedy placed a comforting hand on the other girl's knee and gently prodded her. "Will? What's the matter? Are you upset about Sirius?"

_Sirius_ Willow's eyes clenched shut at the thought of him and sudden tears burned at the corner of her eyes. Her stomach felt queasy with a combination of anger, remorse, hate, and… love?

"Oh Ken, I feel so confused. I mean, I've been so angry with Sirius these last few days and after talking things over with you I've really figured out all his faults and that, well," Willow shrugged helplessly. "I really didn't think we were good together. I mean, this morning, I thought I had it all figured out…"

"But now?" she asked gently as she continued to softly rub Willow's knee.

"But now I feel sick to my stomach. A—A part of me _hates_ him for what he did to me, but I'm not even sure why I do hate him so much. And—And I don't know. I'm so mixed up!" she half-sobbed.

"Well, what's stopping you from going back to him, then?" Kennedy asked her with observant eyes.

"He—I," Willow shrugged. "I just feel like there's not really a future for us. And…" Willow trailed off, suddenly embarrassed by the pulsing warmth she felt as she watched Kennedy's hand lay over her knee. She was perplexed as to why she was with Sirius for so long and had ignored her first feelings of attraction towards Kennedy. She and the other woman connected so well, both magically and personality-wise, and lately she made Willow's heart pound in her chest.

"And what, Will?" Kennedy asked; and her voice slid an octave lower as she lightly moved her hand slightly above Willow's knee.

Her breath sped as she felt that familiar warmth again as her eyes traveled over Kennedy's beautiful body. Suddenly, nothing else existed in her mind but the sudden yearning she felt for her fellow witch. As her hand moved higher up Willow's leg, Willow rapidly remembered what it was like to be with another woman.

Closing the space between them, Kennedy's face was soon just inches from Willow. "And what?" she whispered in her ear.

The words fell off her tongue as easily as rain from a thunderstorm. "And I think I'm falling in love with you."

"Good," Kennedy sighed as she traced the contours of Willow's ear with her tongue. "Because I love you, too, my darling witch."

A groan sounded through Willow as she arched at the woman's touch; that warmth once again spreading from her fingertip to her toes. "Oh, Kennedy."

Gentle lips pressed against her mouth and Willow eagerly returned the kiss. Swiftly it felt like everything was right with the world – Kennedy was hers and she was Kennedy's. As that pulsing warmth reached her core, Willow pressed Kennedy backwards onto the bed and began exploring her mouth with her tongue.

"WHAT THE BLOODY _FUCK_ ARE YOU DOING?" shouted a voice that made a shudder of guilt pass through her.

Willow jumped up and stared at Sirius Black in surprise as he stood in the doorway. His face was splotched with red and his features held a look of horror mixed with anger. Quicker than she could see, he whipped out his wand and said something that had Kennedy flying backwards against the wall.

"Get _off_ of her!" he shouted through clenched teeth.

Then he whirled around to face Willow, but she noticed his wand was pointing downwards. "And _you!_ What are you doing, Willow? Why the hell are you with her?" His words were angry, but his tone hinted at a sense of betrayal and hurt that simultaneously made Willow feel guilty and a bit confused – and suddenly angry.

"Sirius! You can't just burst in here, hexing Kennedy just because you feel like it!" she chastised him as she slid off the bed and faced him with angry eyes. Behind her, poor Kennedy was holding her head painfully from her position on the floor.

"Willow, you were bloody on top of her! What happened to this 'oh, she's my bloody best friend' crap you were spewing earlier?" he sneered slightly as his whole body vibrated with rage.

The way he talked about Kennedy made her feel very angry and protective. "I broke up with you this morning, Sirius. I have a right to kiss whoever I like!"

Sirius raised his wand angrily again and pointed it at Kennedy but with a movement of her hand, she sent the wizard flying backwards into the hallway.

"Don't hurt Kennedy," she warned him in a low voice. "This isn't her fault, so stop being an idiot."

"That stupid witch put you up to this – you can't care for her like you care for me!" Sirius said vehemently as he thudded his palm against his chest and slowly got to his feet. His eyes shined as he looked at her with raw pain and something in her chest tightened.

Willow balked for a second, but then the words flowed out of her. "I'm sorry, Sirius, but I've been feeling this way for a while now. Kennedy and I can related in so many ways that you and I can't, and honestly? I've missed being with a woman. I'm sorry."

The hallway had begun fill up with people who had heard the commotion. Through the crowd, Willow now saw most of the male members of the house, Buffy, Faith, Dawn, and Luna, along with a few potentials. Everyone looked shocked and their eyes darted between Sirius and Willow nervously, like they couldn't believe their eyes.

Sirius' jaw dropped and unrepentantly, the rage bled out of him until he sagged under the weight of his sorrow. "Do you really mean that?"

Willow felt Kennedy step next to her and she suddenly felt braver. "Yes, I do."

He stared at them for a moment more before nodding dully. "Alright then," he said as he turned his back and pushed through the crowd.

"Will?" Buffy asked in astonishment. "What just happened?"

She felt the heaviness of everyone's gaze and sighed. "It's like I told you the other day, Buff. Sirius and I are finished." Then Willow used magic to shut the door and curled up against Kennedy on the bed.

Willow _knew_ she had done what needed to be done…

But that still didn't mean that she didn't feel sick to her stomach.

* * *

Sirius tore out of that house like a Seeker chasing a snitch – except what he was chasing was solitude. Regardless of how much he had drank, he was sobered up from witnessing Willow kissing Kennedy. Merlin, his stomach lurched at the memory – how could Willow do that?

Worse, was having everyone he knew witness that moment. He, Sirius Black, had had his heart broken in the worst way – his girlfriend had left him, he had caught her kissing a woman, and all his friends witnessed it. Bloody hell, he wished he had never stolen that witch's bread and eggs all those months ago!

He stormed out into the backyard and yelled at the girls playing with Buckbeak. "Oi! You potentials all go back inside! I need Buckbeak!" They are stared at him with alarmed eyes, likely because he had never raised his voice at the potentials before. Luckily, they scattered quickly and Sirius bowed to Buckbeak. His friend did the same and Sirius walked up to him.

"Ok, Buckbeak, time to go."

The hippogriff cocked his head to the side and gave him a perplexed look.

"We're leaving Sunnydale, forever. Gonna go back to England."

Buckbeak made an angry sound and flapped his wings, as if to say 'Hell _no_ I'm not going back to that sunless country to live in caves again!'

Sirius tore an angry hand through his hair as he gestured wildly with his other. "Look Buckbeak, we're leaving Willow – she and I are finished."

Buckbeak shook his head 'no' and promptly sat on the ground.

"Dammit, Buckbeak! I know you like her since you two can actually do that mind-talky thingy" – Merlin, he had hung around the Scoobies for too long – "but she _left me_. Okay? She left me and I just found her kissing another woman – that Kennedy slag!"

Eyes widening slightly, the hippogriff stood up and made an angry sound towards the house as he flapped his wings threateningly; he didn't like Kennedy either.

"Yeah, anyways, that's why we gotta go," Sirius explained.

"Why do you have to go?" Dawn said in a sad voice as she suddenly appeared behind him.

Sirius pressed his lips together as he faced the aspiring witch – he had hoped to leave without talking to anyone. "Did you just not witness that spectacular end to my relationship?" he asked dryly.

"So?" Dawn pouted. "Just because you and Willow are having issues doesn't mean you have to leave! We need you, what with the Big Bad evil and who's going to play good cop to Remus' bad cop during mine and Luna's lessons?" Her eyes were wide and full of hurt and apprehension.

He bit his lip, sighed, and rubbed the back of his head. "Dawn, you know I love you like family – and the other Scoobs, too – but I can't stay here. Especially not if Willow is going to be with her," he spat out.

"Well, um, I could hex her! Like, hex her lips closed or—ooh! Me and Buckbeak could drop her off in the middle of the desert!" she said hopefully.

Buckbeak let out a sound of amusement and approval at that idea.

"Just please don't go, okay?" she added in a small voice.

"Dawn, I—" But Sirius didn't know what to say. Over the past almost eight months, Dawn had become like a niece of his. He didn't want to upset her nor did he want to leave his only friends in the world. Sunnydale had become his home and he was reluctant to exit it.

Yet at the same time he knew he would break even further if he had to watch Willow and Kennedy carry on like a couple of love sick teenagers.

"Dawn, look. Harry's Third Task is coming up and you know that there's something fishy going on there – not even Dumbledore understands how Harry's name got entered into the Twiwizard Tournament. Besides, I just need to get away from this," he said with a hand gesture towards the house, but he really meant Willow and the growing ache in his chest. "Okay? Harry needs me, too. But I'll come back. And we can still stay in touch," he offered with an earnest smile.

"Just like Tara, just like mom," Dawn said in a quiet voice as she took a step backwards. "Everyone always has to leave."

"Dawn, I'm sorry—"

She held up a hand for silence. "No, it's okay, Sirius. Harry needs you, too, and," she shrugged. "I guess if I was you, I wouldn't want to stay either."

He pulled the girl into a tight hug. "Just stay safe," he whispered. "And tell Remus I'm sorry for leaving him alone with you and Luna," he smiled.

Dawn pulled back and smiled weakly at him. "Sorry won't cut it when we're done with him."

"Take care, Dawn."

"You, too," she replied in a soft voice.

Moments later, he and Buckbeak took to the skies and kept flying until Sunnydale disappeared underneath the heavy cover of the clouds.

* * *

**A/N:**  
_*Author hides behind an upturned table as readers throw tomatoes, zucchini, pineapples, and peaches at her._ Ouch! Hey! The pineapple was pokey!

Don't hate meeee….Hate Musie. She's the twisted, evil one… It took a long time from their initial fight to this and I apologize… I think it's partly because I was dreading writing this chapter!

Review, Dearest Readers? :)

Coming up next… 12 Grimmauld Palace.


	81. A Black Family Reunion

A Black Family Reunion

**A/N:**

You know what's crazy? This story so far has slightly more words than Order of the Phoenix…heehee, who would have thought? Thaaaank you for reading all of it so far!

As always, thank you to everyone who reviews – I adore you. Trust me, this story would not be as long or as elaborate as it is if it wasn't for your words of encouragement & inspiration! I mean that :)

Mad thanks to Greywizard for proofing this chapter :D

* * *

Sirius took a deep breath of the musty air as he swirled the amber liquid in his glass.

Slumped in a heavily cushioned chair that sunk beneath his weight, his eyes roved over the dust-covered den at Number Twelve Grimmauld Place. He despised the sight of his childhood home and was even further aggravated that his mother's good-for-nothing house elf had done nothing to keep the place in decent condition since her passing. Layers of dust and grime covered everything from the fireplace to the sofa to the bookcase, and a foul, musty odor filled the air.

It was almost fitting how the home of his forefathers now mirrored how filthy Sirius felt on the inside.

Knocking back another gulp of firewhiskey, he sighed heavily. He had been here for a week now and each waking moment had been disrupted by thoughts of Willow. Sometimes, he was furious with her for discarding him so easily for that slag; other times, he was so filled with sorrow that his chest ached with an emptiness that was worse than any moment in Azkaban. In fact, he often caught himself looking over his shoulder, so sure was he that dementors were following him. After all, what else could create such a feeling of despair?

Sirius tipped the firewhiskey bottle over his glass again, smiling grimly at the numbing liquid pouring out to greet him. The past week had gone by in a blur of despair and firewhiskey – quite likely a poor combination, but the only way he seemed to know how to live anymore.

A sharp rap on the door interrupted his melancholy thoughts as he jumped, rather unsteadily due to the alcohol, to his feet and drew out his wand. A sadistic smile came to his face as he wondered if the Ministry had found him. He hoped so, for two different reasons.

One, because he so badly needed a good, bloody fight.

And two, because a part of him wanted to die.

At the moment, Sirius wasn't quite sure which one of those options he preferred more.

"Oi! Sirius, open up. It's me, Tonks!" he heard his second cousin shout out in a loud, albeit muffled, voice from the other side of the door.

Grunting, he slid back down into his chair. Bloody great. He bet ten Galleons that Xander had told Tonks about him leaving and now his bloody cheerfully abrasive relative was here to bother him.

Sod it all to hell; Sirius wasn't in the mood for any damn company.

He stayed silent.

"Sirius! Stop being a dramatic arse and open this door!" Tonks shouted again in an agitated voice.

"Hold on there, one moment," he heard another female voice dimly say. Sirius immediately sat up straight in his chair. What other woman would be with Tonks? Would it be… Could it be… Willow?

His heart thudded in anticipation and suddenly that ember of life spark back up inside him. He could see it now – Willow had soon realized how awful Kennedy was and how she had screwed up by kicking him out. Now she was here to beg for forgiveness and Sirius would… What would he do? Well, while he did have his pride, he knew he would just pause for a moment after her apology – just to let her know that he did need to 'consider' it – but then he would scoop her into his arms and kiss her like no one had ever kissed her before.

"Alohamora!" The door was pushed open with a loud bang and suddenly his bloody mother was screaming again as the moth-eaten velvet curtains covering her portrait flew apart.

**"BLOOD TRAITORS! FOUL FILTH! HOW DARE YOU ENTER AND BESMIRCH THE HOUSE OF MY FATHERS!"**

Sirius groaned as he realized he would have to ruin Willow's entrance by shutting his mother up. He stalked towards the portrait as two shadowy figures stood in the entrance way; their hands covering their ears.

His mother paused as one figure stepped closer. **"YOOOOOOOU! BLOOD TRAITOR! BETRAYER OF YOUR FAMILY! YOU, WHO BROKE MY DEAR BROTHER'S HEART WHEN YOU MARRIED THAT FILTHY MUGGLE!"**

Sirius froze into place and his heart jumped at his mother's words.

"Great Circe, Aunt Walburga! Even from beyond the grave, you prove to be the one person more aggravating than my own mother!" snarled the woman as she struggled to close the curtains. Once her task was accomplished, a peaceful silence descended onto the house.

"A-Andi?" he whispered weakly at the first sight of his favorite cousin in over thirteen years. At the same time, a piece of his heart crumbled to disappointed dust at the realization that his mind had only toyed with him cruelly moments ago – Willow was never coming back to him again.

As she turned towards him, Sirius could only gape in astonishment. Yes, it had been years, but he would have recognized her anywhere. She looked a great deal like her older sister, Bellatrix, but her face was softer; kinder looking. Long messy brown curls hung over her shoulders and a small smile played upon her full lips.

"Wotcher, Siri," she smiled. "You look," her heavy-lidded eyes traveled across his body as she smirked slightly. "Well, I was never able to lie to you, little cousin. You look worse than Grandma Irma after she would sneak a bottle of firewhiskey at family feasts."

"Wotcher, Sirius," Tonks gave him a small – almost pitying – smile after she glanced at her mother. "We came, because, well, Xander told me on the phone at mum and da's house what happened last week and mum thought we should visit ya."

Sirius scowled at Tonks; more so at that the way she looked at him than her words.

"As nice as it is to see you both – especially you, Andi – I'm not up for hosting visitors at this time. So, best you two be off." Sirius was pretty sure he didn't slur any of that, but after a bottle of firewhiskey he really couldn't be sure.

Andromeda Tonks raised a well-groomed eyebrow in amusement. "Oh please, Siri. We're going to stay and you're going to put on some tea."

"I love ya, Andi, but no," he grunted irritably in reply.

"Sirius, unless you want me telling Tonks – who will then tell Harry and everyone else you know – how Bella and I would dress you up in make-up and outrageous dresses when you were a child, I believe you will play the proper host and cease your depressing hermitage – especially because I still have the pictures." Andromeda openly grinned at him, reveling in her blackmailing powers, while Tonks snickered quietly next to her.

Merlin, he forgot how stubborn his cousin could be. Stupid family traits.

"Fine," he grumbled as he made his way towards the stairs that led to the basement kitchen, swaying slightly as he walked.

Tonks let out a low whistle. "Bollocks, how much have you been drinking?"

"Tonks," Andromeda said in a warning tone.

Sirius ignored her comment. He would bloody drink as much as he wanted, damn it. As Faith once said, he was a grown ass - uh, man, that is!

Although, after fumbling around the stove, it became clear in his inebriated state that one thing his grown ass could not do was make tea. As the kettle clattered to the hard stone floor for the third time, Andromeda clucked her tongue and sat him down in a chair at the kitchen table before wordlessly making the tea herself.

"So," she finally said once she had poured the hot water over their tea bags and sat down.

"So," Sirius repeated as his eyes found a particularly dusty patch of the long rectangular table to be terribly fascinating.

"How are you?" Andromeda asked earnestly. Sirius glanced up and then quickly averted his eyes from her intense chocolate-colored ones.

"Fine," he mumbled as he took a sip of tea. Cursing inwardly, he made a face at the heat of the drink and clumsily set it down as droplets of liquid spilled over the edges.

"It's hot, you know," his cousin smiled wryly.

"Gee, thanks for that," he grumbled.

A beep sounded and Tonks pulled out a smooth circular stone that was emitting a bluish light. "Oh, blimey, Kingsley's calling." She glanced at her mother and Sirius. "Sorry, I've got to go. But, um, Sirius? I'll come back to visit soon and maybe, er," Tonks glanced around at the numerous cobwebs and thick dust. "Maybe I'll help you clean."

Sirius shrugged. "Don't have to do that but thanks anyway. See you, Tonks." He winced at the way his s's drew out at the end of 'thanks' and 'Tonks'. Damn. He really hated that he was drunk in front of his older cousin after not seeing her in so long.

When Tonks had left – after clumsily knocking over an old umbrella stand and Andromeda had to shut up his mother's portrait again – his cousin gave him an amused smile as she sipped her tea.

"Nymphadora must be worried about you. She despises cleaning."

Sirius made a face. "Nothing to be worried about. I'm bloody fine."

"You know, you really haven't written me as much as you should. I've had to get most of my gossip from Nymphadora, who gets it from this Muggle boy she has been, quote, 'talking to'."

Andromeda then rolled her eyes. "Honestly, I don't understand young people. Obviously, she 'talks' to him, since I've heard them on the phone often enough at my house – Nymphadora lives in more of a wizarding apartment in Hogsmeade and, thus, doesn't have a telephone – but for some reason 'talking to' implies some sort of dating. Yet I just don't see why they just don't say they are dating." Andromeda sighed and took another sip of her hot jasmine tea.

"Xander's a good guy," Sirius commented. "I didn't realize he spoke to Tonks so often; he's fairly close-lipped about their relationship. 'Course, it's probably because I threatened to burn all his comic books if he ever broke her heart."

"Comic books, huh?" she snorted with laughter. "Glad to know you're still as protective as you were when I started dating Ted."

Sirius found himself grinning at the memory. "Andi, the man needed a proper threatening."

"Right – a twelve-year old threatening a nineteen-year old man that he would make him permanently sing soprano thanks to an altered severing charm if he ever broke his cousin's heart. That was priceless," she laughed.

He joined in her laughter. "Well you should have heard all the threats I got from Willow's fri—" Abruptly he cut off his words as a fistful of blunt pain rocketed into his gut.

Andromeda laid a hand on his arm and gave Sirius a kind look. "What happened, Siri? It sounded like you were really serious with this woman."

Sirius let out a ragged breath. "Serious? I'm always Sirius!" he joked weakly with a joyless smile.

"Siri," she responded in the same tone that she had used on Tonks earlier.

Gnawing on his lip, Sirius sighed again and then told Andromeda the whole story – how he had neglected to fully expose all his secrets to Willow, yet had told Faith many of them, how they had fought, and then how he had walked in on her and Kennedy.

"Merlin," she sighed sadly. Then she gave him a sharp look. "So, do you want me to hex the living hell out of this Kennedy slag?" Judging by her tone and what he knew of the Black tendency to fiercely protect those they cared about, Sirius knew she would take the next portkey to Sunnydale if he asked.

He gave her a small smile and a peck on the cheek. "As much fun as that sounds, I will have to decline. Willow, she, well -" he shrugged. "She made her choice. It wasn't me."

Andromeda sat back in her high-backed chair and gave him a skeptical look. "I'm sorry, I thought I was talking to Sirius Black, my very Gryffindor cousin. Are you really just letting this Willow go without a fight?"

"It's not worth it," he said between gritted teeth as he gripped his tea cup tightly.

Her eyes widened. "I thought you loved this girl – could even bloody envision marrying her. And you're telling me, she ain't worth it?"

"You don't get it, Andie, so don't bother trying to dispense the love advice," he growled; suddenly wishing his favorite cousin would leave.

"Sirius!" she said in a shocked voice. "Look at you! It's clear that you haven't bathed since you got back and you've been living in this hell hole with only a bottle of firewhiskey as your friend. You obviously are miserable and if you think letting this girl go without a fight is a thing to do, then you clearly haven't looked in a mirror!"

He turned her head away from her; feeling suddenly ashamed. "The past eight months of knowing Willow were too good to be true, Andie. Living with her – being with her – was like a dream. And last week, I woke up," he stated in an expressionless voice.

"Then tell her that! Show her you're better than that slag! You're Sirius Black, one of the best Quidditch Beaters Hogwarts has seen! Sirius Black, who—"

"Who what?" Sirius turned to her with a snarl; angry at her attempted pep talk attempt. "Sirius Black, who let his best friends get murdered? Sirius Black, who everyone thinks is a mass murderer? Sirius Black, who let his godson go through hell – _hell_," he hissed, "living with his evil Muggle family, all because he had been stupid enough to go after Peter alone? Sirius Black, who is a wanted convict? Sirius Black, who has done _nothing_ of worth with his life?"

With his final shouted words he threw a china dish containing sugar at the wall and felt some small bit of satisfaction at seeing it shatter; like his heart recently had.

Andromeda appeared surprised – and then saddened – by his outburst. "Siri, I'm sor—"

He cut her off with an angry hand that whipped through the air. "No, don't. I can't bear to hear people feel sorry for me. I deserve what I get – in this life and the next. And apparently, in this life, it's Willow leaving me."

Sirius sighed sadly. "Just – please don't mention her anymore. Okay?"

Andromeda hesitated and then nodded. Sirius was sure, assuming she hadn't changed much, that she would still bring it up later but at least he could have some peace for now.

"So," she said in a different, lighter, tone. "Harry's Third Task is happening soon. Will you at least be leaving your fortress of solitude to attend?"

Sirius found himself chuckling softly as he recognized the term from Xander's many attempts to educate him on 'proper' Muggle pop culture education. "Let me guess – Ted the muggleborn is a comics fan?"

Andromeda released a breathtaking smile at the mention of her husband. "Oh yes," she laughed. "It is quite cute."

* * *

**A/N:**  
I know many of you, Dearest Readers, are going rather mad trying to figure out when secrets will be coming out into the open, but a big one - _THEE_ biggest one – gets revealed in the next chapter! *squeal* I can't wait :D

Please leave a review and let me know what you think! I wrote this in a melancholy mood a long time ago and hoped that I captured Sirius well enough! Oh, and i hope you liked my Andromeda as well! I had fun writing them :)


	82. Truths and Lies A Deadly Surprise

Truths and Lies... A Deadly Surprise

**A/N:**

Remus' idea on what to do with Kennedy was completely inspired by djhardim ;)

Their 'celebrity couple' name was also inspired by a reviewer….but I can't remember who! So sorry! If you let me know I'll edit this chapter and give you credit!

And as always, thanks to Greywizard for being a kickin' beta!

* * *

Overhead, the bright sun illuminated the majesty of the familiar park. As Willow strolled over the small bridge laid over a bubbling creek, she smiled as she took in the beauty of the outdoors. Green leaves sparkled under the afternoon sky and, after crossing the bridge, she relished the feeling of soft grass under her bare feet, giggling as it tickled her. Looking down, she saw that she was wearing a pale pink loose-fitting dress that cinched at her waist; feeling silly she spun in a circle to see it flare out at her ankles.  
_  
"I've lived my life in shadow, never the sun on my face." _

Willow's ears perked up at the familiar song and her heartstrings tugged at the voice. Without thinking she began to follow the sound of the voice.  
_  
"It didn't seem so sad though, I figured that was my place." _

Willow picked up her dress and began running across the park towards a dark grove of tress that sat under a thundercloud. As she got closer the temperature began dropping and goosebumps rippled across her bare arms. The wind began picking up, shaking the boughs of trees, and seemed to hiss at her in anger.  
_  
"Now I'm bathed in light, something just isn't right." _

Breathing heavily, she stumbled into the woods and looked around wildly. There! There was a figure with her back turned to Willow standing under a shaft of light that filtered through the tree branches. Shakily, she approached the figure with bated breath; so sure that this was Tara, her Tara, singing for her again.

Hesitant fingers clasped the woman's shoulders. "Tara?" Willow called our in a small voice as she turned the figure around.  
_  
"I'm under your spell," _continued the soft singing voice as she spun gracefully to face Willow.

But instead of being thrilled at the image, Willow let out a yelp of fear. For the woman in front of her was not Tara…but herself. Her counterpart wore a disturbed expression as she held out a hand towards Willow.  
_  
"I'm under your spell," _she repeated as thin, black veins began to blossom over her face and her hair bled to black as dark as night.

Willow stumbled backwards, sprawled onto the hard forest floor, and stared fearfully as her counterpart continued singing.  
_  
"I'm un-der your spell,  
Growing so powerfully,  
Soon together we'll be." _

She smiled at someone behind Willow, but Willow was too enraptured with the singing to turn backwards.  
_  
"It's magic I can te-ell,  
How I'm no longer free,  
Broke off true love so easily." _

A sharp pain pierced her heart and Willow grabbed her chest at the last line. "Who are you?" she whimpered to the woman.

The woman just smiled enigmatically as she beckoned for someone behind Willow; the ring on her finger glowing a brilliant red that cast the surrounding forest awash in a pinkish color.

Willow decided to look behind her… and screamed when she saw Lucius Malfoy looming over her. He smiled cruelly at her and his arms descended to snatch her up as a feeling of dread welled up within her chest…

Willow gasped loudly as her eyes snapped open to reveal that she way lying in her bed. Jerking up, she breathed heavily as her eyes darted around the room. The memory of her dream was murky but she did remember that last image of Lucius Malfoy reaching for her…A shiver ran through her at the image.

But he was dead, right? So why was she dreaming about him?

Willow let out a groan as she sank back into the warm comfort of her bed. Nightmares had been plaguing her every night this week and the worst part was that she could barely remember them. The only reasoning she could provide for her dreams was maybe guilt for breaking up with Sirius.

Not that she cared, of course. After all, she felt it deeply within her that she had made the right decision concerning that situation. Yet, at the same time her stomach always seemed to twist at the memory of him gazing at her in horror and hatred when he walked in on her and Kennedy. It was hard to explain, how she felt… Maybe she _did_ still feel something for Sirius?

As soon as the thought entered her mind, a flash of hot anger swam through her and she immediately dismissed the thought. No, Kennedy was the one for her.

Speaking of the devil, a soft knock sounded on Willow's bedroom door. "Come in!" she called; pleased that after her nightmare she wouldn't be alone anymore.

"Hey, Will. How was your nap?" Kennedy asked in a concerned tone as she walked in with a leather-bound book and took a seat on her bed. "I thought I felt something wrong.

Willow frowned and shrugged. "More nightmares that I can't really remember; 'cept this one had Lucius Malfoy in it," she sneered in disgust.

Kennedy's eyes widened in surprise. "Really? What happened?"

"I dunno," Willow shrugged again. "He was coming after me or something – I'm guessin' my subconscious is feeling pretty guilty."

"Probably," she agreed.

"Hey, how'd you know I was having a bad dream?" Willow asked curiously.

Kennedy smiled shyly and brushed her lips over Willow's. "Because we're tied together, my love. You were upset and I felt it."

"Oh," Willow smiled giddily. "That makes sense. Tara… Tara and I had a connection like that," Willow admitted with a small smile.

"Really?" Kennedy's brow rose in surprise. "Well then, I suppose I am in good company."

Willow laughed softly. "Yeah, you are," she replied; thinking of how Tara and Kennedy differed, but Willow loved her, anyway. Then again, she supposed Sirius was a lot different from Tara as well.

_STOP_ her brain ordered her. She would _not_ think about Sirius.

"So, I've been thinking."

"Uh-oh, that's never a good thing," Willow teased as she intertwined fingers with Kennedy. Her girlfriend laughed and gave her a lingering kiss as her hand caressed the side of Willow's breast. Since they had begun dating, they had not engaged in anything sexual, but with every touch Willow felt a burning fire within her – and that the only solution would be to dive deep into Kennedy's love for her.

"Silly," Kennedy rolled her eyes. "No, I've been thinking about the First. So it's laying low but we still have Luke out there, right? Last time he tampered with our wards and it's highly likely that he'll do so again. Therefore, we need a surefire way to make our wards intruder-proof."

"Hmm," Willow nodded. "Good point. What are you thinking?"

"This," Kennedy answered as she opened her book and turned to a page in the middle.

The spell was called _'Sang Appelé'_, and Willow knew enough French to understand that to mean 'Blood Called.' Frowning, she began to read over the instruction; her expression turning more grim by the second.

"Kennedy," she finally said in a soft, incredulous voice. "This… this is _not_ a good spell."

"Will, what's the matter?" Kennedy frowned.

"Ken! This spell asks for the sacrifice of a predator, preferably a lion. And then once the wards are activated, anyone not recognized gets mystically stabbed and all the blood drains out of their body!" she informed her girlfriend with an air of puzzlement – why would Kennedy think this was okay? After all, Willow was trying desperately hard _not_ to engage in using dark magic and now her girlfriend is trying to get her to do a blood spell!

"Willow," Kennedy said in a hurt voice as her hand captured Willow's. The other woman began making soothing circles over the finger where her mood ring was and the tension began leaving her muscles.

"Will, you know I only want what's best for you – and everyone else, right?" Kennedy asked with a pout.

Willow pursed her lips, still unsure about the blood spell, but found herself nodding. "Yeah."

"Trust me, this spell is the only way to keep us safe. After all the girls who have died, you don't want us to lose any more – do you?"

Gazing into Kennedy's coffee-colored eyes, Willow found herself getting lost. She new Kennedy only wanted what was best for them, after all. "No," she replied.

"So don't you think we should do whatever is necessary to protect the people we love?"

Willow licked her suddenly dry lips. "I'm afraid…this is dark magic…what if I turn dark?" she asked in a tearful voice. "I don't want to be bad."

Kennedy clutched her hand tighter. "You will be fine, I'll watch over you. I love you, don't you trust me?"

Well, that made sense. Kennedy only wanted what was best and Willow knew she could trust her girlfriend. "Of course," she replied with a watery smile.

"Excellent," Kennedy beamed as she pecked Willow on the lips. "I've already found a lion from a nearby safari park – we can do it right now, outside away from prying eyes. After all, it would be irresponsible for us to waste time, right?"

Willow nodded. "You're so smart, Ken," she replied warmly.

"Oh no, baby – you are," Kennedy smiled secretly.

* * *

"So this is the 'Man Cave'," Faith remarked with a wry grin as she sauntered into the gold and red decorated den on the second floor of the Summers household.

"Yup, you should feel very privileged to be here, Faith. You too, Buffy, Dawn, and Anya," Xander grinned with a waggle of his eyebrows.

Dawn spotted the pool table that had certainly never been seen by here before. "Whoa, where did you get _that_?" she asked with a pout as he index finger stabbed accusingly towards the object in question.

"Pilfered it from the house next door," Spike smile victoriously as he sat down in the love seat.

"Spike," Buffy frowned disapprovingly as she eyed the room. "You can't steal from people. And – wait. How'd you even get into their home uninvited?" she asked in a perplexed voice.

Spike threw his arms over the top of his love seat and raised a poignant brow. "Everyone's cleared out of Sunnyhell, pet. Apparently, they don't consider these houses their homes anymore, so I don't need an invite."

Buffy stiffened at Spike's use of the word 'pet' towards her, thinking of Anya's comments the previous week, and shrugged. "Still…"

"Don't sweat it, B," Faith grinned as she plopped onto a chair and grabbed a slice of pizza out of the box Xander was carrying. "They ain't comin' back – least, I hope not. This place has gone from Hellmouth to hellhole," she cracked as she bit into her pizza.

"The atmosphere is rather tense," Remus agreed as he sat in a large chair. "Although we haven't seen any more demonic creatures since the fight against Caleb," he commented thoughtfully. "It makes me wonder how much longer this quiet moment will last."

Anya settled herself into his lap, secretly grinning at Remus' discomfort as she wiggled her butt against him in the process. "Maybe we scared the big, bad, incorporeal evil away," she offered with a shrug.

"Yeah, I wish," Buffy snorted as she looked around the room; realizing that after everyone else had sat down the only available seat was next to Spike. She paused a moment – and silently noted that Spike looked almost hurt at her hesitation – before she sat into the small space next to him. It was crazy for her to act weird – Spike was now her closest friend, even if they did have a complicated relationship at best. But now after Anya's comments about her being in love with Spike…well, Buffy just didn't know what to think about that idea. Not yet, anyway.

"Okay, can we talk about the _real_ reason why I bribed you guys with pizza to meet her?" Dawn piped up with a slight whine in her voice.

"Go 'head, Dawnie," Xander prompted her. "What is it you wanted and why did we need to make sure Willow wasn't here?"

"Yeah, are you afraid of Willow being mad at you for all those pranks you've been doing to Kennedy?" Buffy asked thoughtfully. "'Cause, officially speaking, you should be nicer to a fellow fighter against evil but—"

"—but unofficially, you kick ass, pipsqueak," Faith smirked. "Cursing her so she could only speak in song yesterday was hilarious!"

"Yeah, good show, Dawn," Remus laughed. "That woman has such an awful voice though – it almost seemed a punishment for the rest of us!"

Dawn preened silently while everyone laughed at her handiwork in the last week.

"Thank you, thank you," Dawn said not-so-humbly. "But that's not the real reason. The real one is I think we need an intervention with Willow and we need to get Sirius back."

The adults all shared contemplative looks.

"Dawn," Buffy said gently. "I know you miss Sirius, but—"

"—But what?" Dawn responded with narrowed eyes. "C'mon! You guys miss him, too!"

"Damn straight," Faith snorted. "I'd love to trade in bitchy-witchy for Mad Dog."

"Agreed," Remus sighed. He was both angry at Sirius for leaving – especially after yelling at _him_ for leaving after the vineyard – and disappointed his friend wasn't around.

"'Sides, you said it yourself. The Big Bad is only laying low, but soon we're gonna need _all_ the firepower we can get!" Dawn urged with sharp nods.

"Dawn, Sirius is a very proud man and always has been," Remus explained. "He's been hurt terribly and he's stubborn enough that I doubt he will return while Kennedy and Willow are still together – not that I can blame him."

"Well then let's break them up!" Dawn suggested in a very 'duh!' voice. "Kennedy's a stupid slag, anyway."

"Oi, watch your mouth there, Nibblet," Spike scolded with a wagging finger, but as soon as Buffy looked away, he winked at the teenager.

"I like the way 'lil sis thinks," Faith smiled wickedly as her mind began to contemplate various scenarios. "We'll show Kennedy what happens when you mess with Mad Dog's woman."

"You know," Remus mused. "It wouldn't be a bad idea if we slipped some polyjuice with Sirius' hairs to Kennedy. Then, when she turns into Sirius Black, we could knock her out and floo her to the Ministry of Magic; who would be thrilled to find a wanted murderer on their doorstep!" Remus grinned wickedly while everyone dissolved into giggles.

"Okay, that's evil…but funny," Buffy admitted with a smile.

"Guys, hold on," Xander interrupted. "Listen, Sirius was my friend, too, but Willow has been my best friend for forever. Just because we don't agree with her choices doesn't mean we have a right to interfere." Half of the group – Dawn, Remus, and Faith – glared at him.

"Hey," Xander threw his hands up in a 'surrender' gesture. "I've actually hung out with Kennedy a couple times and she isn't _that_ bad. I know I haven't really seen Willow much lately – she's always with Kennedy in her room – but from what I've gathered from her, Willow's said she's been caring about Kennedy for a while and things just happened when she broke up with Sirius," he shrugged.

"Still, can't believe Red hooked up with Kennedy," Faith shook her head with a frown.

"Well, they were on a break," Buffy spoke up in defense of her long-time best friend.

"Oh my _god_, Buffy. You are _so_ not using _that_ excuse. It didn't work for Ross, it doesn't work for Willow," Dawn rolled her eyes.

"I remember watching that episode," Anya sneered as she lightly fingered her wand. "I swear, I would have loved to have used my vengeance powers against that geeky scientist!"

"Ahn, you _do_ know that was all make-believe, yeah?" Xander asked with a concerned look at his former fiancé.

"That's not the point," Anya sniffed as she crossed her arms. "Rachael got screwed by that bonehead dinosaur-loving cretin."

"Besides," Anya added, "why are we even discussing this, anyway? So what if Willow ran off with her lesbian best friend? It wouldn't be the first time she harbored secret feelings for a best friend and then kissed that person senseless in front of the man she professed to love."

An awkward silence fell upon the den as everyone contemplated Anya's words. Xander looked especially uncomfortable and was biting into his pizza slice with a renewed fervor.

Buffy sighed. "She's not wrong."

"But, but it's stupid!" Dawn cried out, exasperated. "Besides, anyone with a celebrity name of 'Killow' is _not_ good news!"

The room burst into laughter.

"Killow?" Buffy asked incredulously.

Dawn glared at her older sister. "Uh, yeah! Like Brad and Angelina are Brangelina and Tom and Katie are TomKat. Therefore, Willow plus Kennedy equals Killow!"

There were some more snickers and noises of agreement before Dawn continued.

"Regardless, Kennedy is too bitchy for Willow. I hate her," Dawn added in a petulant voice as she crossed her arms.

"Well I don't like her either, Nibblet," Spike offered. "She's a bit too much for me – not to mention her perfume is awful. I can't even stand to be near the bird for too long. Sucks to have a super sense of smell," he added in explanation for everyone.

"I agree," their resident werewolf grimaced.

"Still," Buffy interrupted with an apologetic look towards Dawn. "We've got too much on our plate to be worrying about romantic problems." Spike's eyes darted towards the slayer before he composed his face into one of apathy. "We all love Sirius but right now Will is happy so – since we're facing the origin of evil – let's leave them alone, okay?"

Dawn looked away and evaded Buffy's searching eyes. "Right _Dawn_?" Buffy asked with a raised brow.

"Fine," Dawn sighed heavily. "But I'm still gonna continue pranking the hell outta her."

"I'll help," Faith and Remus simultaneously stated with matching mischievous grins.

* * *

A plethora of candy lined the living room coffee table where about a dozen potential slayers were hungrily picking at the sweets and gossiping. Sitting in the corner of the room, near the bookcase, Andrew was frowning as he tried to ignore their chatter and focus on playing World of Warcraft on his computer. He had been sitting there all afternoon, feeling rather unwanted by everyone else, and now feeling too stubborn to leave after the girls descended like locusts.

Besides, a part of him hoped that they invited him to hang out.

"Hey Andrew, whatcha doin'?" Caridad asked him.

"Just battling the forces of evil," he responded airily.

"You mean you're playing that stupid video game again?" Rona asked in a sarcastic voice as most of the other girls laughed.

Andrew narrowed his eyes and spoke haughtily. "For your information, I am working on battle strategies." …Which was sort of true, since if the slayers ever had to battle night elves, he had a decent attack maneuver.

"Right," Ruriko giggled as she rolled her eyes.

"Come on guys, let's go spar outside," Vi suggested. "I'm feeling all antsy in my pantsy."

Rona made a noise of amusement as she stood up. "Dude, you are so weird."

"I know," Vi replied cheerfully as the other girls followed her out.

Well, most of the other girls.

There was one who stayed behind. Andrew recognized her as one of the girls who came with Luna's grandma and that her name was Lanni. She looked to be about fifteen, had chestnut curls, and wide brown eyes that Andrew felt watching him sometimes. She wandered over to Andrew and sat in a chair next to him.

"Don't mind them making fun of your WOW," she grinned. "To most people who haven't played, they just don't really get it."

Feeling a swell of satisfaction well up inside him, he nodded eagerly. "I know, right? Most people just think it's stupid, but it actually requires a lot of brainpower. So you play?"

"Uh," she winced. "A couple times, but I don't have the patience for it. My brother got me to join – however, I did get one of those night elf Mohawk things!" she laughed.

"Sweet," Andrew nodded as he looked at the younger girl with a newfound respect.

"You know, you kinda remind me of my brother, actually," she said suddenly as she stared at him in interest. "He likes all those games, too, and, um, other things."

Andrew just smiled; not really sure of what these 'other things' were, even if a small, deeper part of him had a good idea.

"Yeah, he's my big brother and is in college right now. Super active in their GLBT org and helpful on campus; even if other people don't always see it. He's a real good guy, though."

"Oh," Andrew frowned. "I can understand that."

"Yeah, I feel like people around here don't really give you any credit. It's… kinda mean," she said with a wince.

"Well, I was once one-third of a crime syndicate and was evil," Andrew explained in his _'woe is me, I've seen great darkness'_ voice.

"Oh," Lanni said in a small voice with wide eyes.

"But — But now I'm trying to be good," he quickly said. "Although, they don't really let me," he added dourly.

"Well," Lanni shrugged and gave him a pointed look. "Isn't Buffy always telling us to do good? Who cares what they think – just do something."

Andrew nodded slowly as her words sank in. "I guess you're right."

Lanni laughed and smiled at him. "As I tell my brother, Derek, I am always right. Besides, if you did crime, then you're just as capable of doing good."

"Yeah…But I kinda raised demons to do my crime, which kinda doesn't fly around here," Andrew shuffled his feet uncomfortably.

"Oh," Lanni replied with raised brows. "Well, does that mean you can do good magic like Luna and Remus?"

He couldn't help himself – he began pouting. "Apparently, you have to go to a special magic guy to get a wand and they won't even let me try. I mean, Anya used Remus' wand once and it worked, but they say it won't for me. I just wish _I_ could do something cool like be a wizard."

She patted his arm consolingly. "Sorry, Andrew. It's too bad there isn't a spare wand laying around for you."

"Lanni!" they heard Rona shout. "Come on out! We need another person for tackle football!"

A bright smile lit up Lanni's face as she looked towards the back of the house.

"Coming!" she called. "Alright, well good luck, Andrew. See ya later!" she said before bounding out of the room.

Hmmm. He had enjoyed his conversation with the young potential vampire slayer. She was a very smart person and was right – he should just try to help regardless of what everyone says…

And the best way to help would be magic.

Now – how could he procure a wand? Remus, Kennedy, Luna, Anya, and Dawn kept theirs on their person at all times, unfortunately. And Sirius was gone, so Andrew couldn't even try to borrow his wand.

Wait a moment.

Andrew just then remembered that Sirius had gotten a new wand in Columbia Village this past January – which meant that he had an extra one…. And since it was unlikely that Sirius remembered that wand in his rush to leave, it was likely still up in Willow's closet.

A slow smile spread across Andrew's face as he began to feel absolutely giddy inside. Yes! He could finally find his hidden powers and help the Scoobies save the world!

Glancing around and seeing no one, thankfully, Andrew very quietly got up and began creeping up the staircase. Earlier, he had seen Willow and Dawn enter the library next to the kitchen so her room would be totally empty. Peering around the corner of the second floor hallway, Andrew very carefully sidled over to Willow's door, looked around one more time, and opened it.

He let out a sigh of relief when he found the room empty and immediately began pondering on where Sirius may have stored his wand. First, he opened the dresser drawers, where he was very embarrassed to find Willow's under-things – that was kinda oooky. Finding nothing of importance, he quickly moved to the closet where he was astounded at how many clothes the Dark One had, mostly in an array of bright colors and some of them fuzzy. Frowning he pushed back to the ends of the rack, hoping to find a box clearly marked _'Sirius' Magic Stuff'_. Instead, however, he was delighted to find a real wizarding robe!

It was forest green and looked just like the robes in the book that Sirius and Remus gave him, _'Hogwarts, A History'_. Cool! Andrew looked around quickly, strained his ears to listen for anyone approaching, and quickly donned the piece of clothing. Grinning like George Lucas had just legally adopted him, Andrew did a giddy spin and checked himself out the mirror. He looked so badass and kinda wished that he had a lightsaber. Or, ooh! Maybe the wand was in here!

Rummaging through the pockets, Andrew was disappointed that there wasn't a wand but he did find a business card. Emblazoned on it was a silver and green crest and the words 'Lucius Malfoy'.

Andrew's eyes bugged out when he saw that.

"Lucius Malfoy?" he exclaimed in surprise at seeing the name of the man who tortured Sirius.

There was a jerking around his navel and the world blurred as Andrew felt himself being transported. He landed face first onto a carpeted floor and felt like he was going to hurl. Groaning, he picked himself up and found Kennedy staring at him in outraged surprise.

"What are _you_ doing here?" she hissed like a snake backed into a corner.

Andrew gulped at her angry words and glanced at the business card.

"I'm not sure," he admitted.

Then he turned the card over and silently read the back of it.

_'To meet with Mr. Malfoy, state his name while holding this card, and you will be immediately portkeyed to his location.'_

Alarmed, Andrew looked up at Kennedy Monroe, potential slayer, with wide eyes and wondered why he had been taken to her bedroom.

* * *

**A.N:**

Ah! Cliffhanger!Luna strikes again! No worries, just need to edit the next chapter and it'll be up.

*cackles evily* Yes, please, oh please tell me your reactions because I have been planning this since about Chapter 30 - Do you _know_ how hard it is for me to keep secrets? And for 50 chapters? I have been waiting to write and post this chapter for MONTHS!

Sadly, after this I only have the next 2 chapters written and then it may be a while cuz  
1) Musie doesn't like playing with me  
2) I bought a Blue Jet 'All You Can Jet' Pass and am crazy busy planning my month-long adventure across America (and maybe Puerto Rico or Colombia) and may not have much writing time.

If you want updates on how my writing is doing or what crazy travels I'll be doing for a whole month, you can check out my LiveJournal (Luna_del_Cielo), and you can 'friend' me if you like :)

**To Help You Keep Track After 82 Chapters….**  
**Remember Willow's robe? Chapter 10 

**Andrew's gift: Chapter 46 

**And remember that card? Chapter 13

**And finally, if you want a clue as to what is going to happen next, it may help to check out Chapter 52 (Well, okay, a lot of chapters point of clues but this chapter holds a special one!)


	83. The Drag Queen of the Wizarding World

**The Drag Queen of the Wizarding World**

* * *

"What are _you_ doing here?" she hissed like a snake backed into a corner.

Andrew gulped at her angry words and glanced at the business card. "I'm not sure," he admitted.

Then he turned the card over and silently read the back of it. _'To meet with Mr. Malfoy, state his name while holding this card, and you will be immediately portkeyed to his location.'_

"Huh. That's odd. This says it was 'sposed to take me to Lucius Malfoy," Andrew mused out loud. "I wonder why it took me here. Maybe because he's dead?"

As Andrew pondered this bizarre blitz of magic, he looked up at Kennedy, who was giving him a calculating stare.

It was then that Andrew remembered that night at the Bronze when Tonks and Xander had used him in their plan to give Spike a potion… A potion that could change the way people looked…

Alarmed, Andrew looked at Kennedy with wide eyes and more fear than he had ever felt.

"Um, well, that was really weird, wasn't it? Maybe it's 'cause we're in a magic house and, ya know, weird things happen here," Andrew nervously squeaked out as he edged towards the door. "Anyways, I better get going. Got, um, stuff to do, ya know."

"What's that in your hand, Andrew?" Kennedy asked in a cool, suspicious voice.

"Just something I found in Willow's stuff," he shrugged casually, albeit nervously.

She said some spell that snatched the business card out of his hand and read it. Immediately, her eyes zoned in on him like a hunting hawk spotting a field mouse.

"It's unwise to sneak through other people's things, Andrew," she told him in a voice that dripped with icicles. "Snoops don't tend to last very long around here… just ask Luke Matthews."

Andrew blanched as Kennedy – or Lucius Malfoy? – let out a stream of high, malevolent laughter that pierced his heart.

"You—You're the reason why Luke disappeared?" Andrew stuttered, remembering that in the movies, the good guy always got the bad guy to confess everything, thus allowing the good guy enough time to get rescued or fight through captivity.

Kennedy twirled her wand in her hand as she gave Andrew a contemptuous look.

"Kennedy Monroe was dating his younger cousin before I locked away the witch and began impersonating her. Of course, I broke up with the mudblood and enjoyed taking pleasure in making her cry. Unfortunately, that little bitch began pestering her uncle about me and how weird _'Kennedy's'_ actions were, so he began looking into me."

Then Kennedy began laughing. "But that worked out just fine, because right when he was getting suspicious, I knocked him off our portkey and stuck one in his pocket that dropped him in the middle of some vampires I paid off," she said gleefully. "And with him gone, everyone thought that _he_ was the one who betrayed everyone to Caleb !"

"Where's the real Kennedy?" Andrew asked bravely; even though he was shaking more than an autumn leaf faced with a winter wind.

He saw her eyes glance at her dresser top where an oak jewelry box, a golden lamp, satchels of herbs, and various clothes were strewn upon it. "Wouldn't you like to know," she sneered as she stared him down.

She chuckled softly a bit more before using a spell to toss Andrew against the wall. "I saw you moving closer to the door, Andrew. That was rather stupid of you." She raised her wand menacingly and Andrew gulped audibly.

"If you kill me, everyone will know that there's still a traitor!" he called out frantically.

A dangerous smile played along her lips as she gazed at Andrew like he was nothing more than a pesky flea.

"Not if I leave a good-bye note from you," she grinned. "Everyone knows you're a coward, Andrew. It won't be a surprise."

"Please!" he begged, his eyes brimming with frightened tears.

"Shut up, you filthy Muggle! _Avad_—"

"Kennedy?" called a clear voice outside. Kennedy looked towards the door in alarm as footsteps approached closer. "Kennedy! You in your room? 'Cause Willow needs some help with a spell," Dawn added.

Kennedy quickly faced Andrew and the last thing he saw before his world went dark was her flashing brown eyes and wicked smile.

* * *

After he had gone to help Willow, Lucius Malfoy sauntered silently outside until he reached the nearby abandoned house that had become his new base of operations. Thanks to the American Department of Magical Affairs getting involved when Alecto and Macnair were murdered, Amy Madison had been arrested and her house searched. He had not wanted to chance going back there, so instead he set up his portable potion-making station up at the first abandoned house down the street.

Furthermore, thanks to that Lovegood brat having her Guardian powers triggered, his master was reluctant to meet with him anymore at the Summers' house. Lucius had not been told the details, but it was clear his master feared that Lovegood would notice his presence if he entered the home.

Feeling his polyjuice potion wear off, Lucius smiled in relief and quickly stripped himself of his female clothes in the living room. For almost five months he had been masquerading as that Kennedy woman and he was more than tired of dressing up as a female. However, he had to admit that his master had been wise in pointing him towards Ms. Monroe and stealing her identity. As both a potential slayer and a witch, she was the perfect cover – and the First's perfect failsafe plan.

Well, almost perfect. He had forgotten about giving the Dark One his business card so long ago. Had he not been alone in the privacy of his own room, that confrontation with Andrew could have gone _much_ differently.

"Lucius? You seem tense. How goes things back at the house?" a speculative, smooth voice sounded behind him.

Lucius turned and bowed, not surprised that his master had once again taken its favorite form of Buffy Summers.

"Things go well, my lord," he said confidently. "I have made significant progress with the Dark One, thanks to the cursed ring's ability to control her emotions. Earlier today, I used the emotion of love to convince her to complete the ritual that you needed. She was hesitant at first, since it was a dark ritual that involved the sacrifice of a lion, but I was able to convince her."

Lucius smiled suddenly with a wicked gleam in his eye. "Of course, it was a human woman transfigured into a lion, but the Dark One did not know. During the spell, her eyes blazed like the blackest of nights and I could feel the dark energy flowing through her – soon, she will be ready to completely serve you, under her own decision."

The First clapped her hands and squealed. "Ooh, I _do_ love a good ritualistic human sacrifice," she beamed. "Already I can feel the power of the blood and it won't be long now until I can make myself known to that house of interfering children."

Then her expression soured. "It is too bad that I have to keep my distance, thanks to that Guardian. Tell me, Lucius, why haven't you killed her yet?" Her tone was threatening and as chilly as a winter night, and Lucius felt a tremor of fear run through him.

He bowed his head guiltily. "I apologize, my Lord. The vampire is constantly with her – even more so after Lovegood's grandmother requested that Spike protect the girl."

"I hate that damn vampire," the First scowled. "Not to mention that damn werewolf, getting a tattoo to lock me out! I cannot wait until I bathe in their blood," she hissed under her breath.

Lucius smiled as he anticipated his future power under the First ruling over the world. "Yes, my master."

"And the Scythe?" the First inquired. "Have you learned anything more on that?"

"I have eavesdropped on the Guardian and the two slayers. All they know is that they can feel the essence of the slayer within the Scythe and that it is a deadly weapon."

"Yes," the First drawled. "I still remember being cut down long ago by that tool. The Guardians imbuing the essence of the slayer into that item made it much more powerful than I would have imagined."

"Should I steal it away?" Lucius asked.

"No. No, not yet," the First said thoughtfully. "I'd like you to continue observing their research on the scythe. My preparations for my arrival into this world are almost complete – thanks to your ritual today – and if they figure out a way to harness that power, I would like to know.

His master chuckled malevolently. "Then we can take it – and use it to murder them all."

* * *

**A/N:**

Terribly short! I know…I had more at the end but it didn't involve Lucius/The First and I decided that this chapter should focus solely on them, plus there was some other stuff that timeline-wise I thought should come later. Grrr, silly Musie.

Next chapter we go back to England! And 'meet' a few 'new' characters in this story…like Voldemort and Trelawney! (I know, you're crazy curious now! Mwaha!)

Now... Please review! *smiles and waits patiently* ...I know some people guessed a while ago but I am curious of what you think of this new twist! I laid a lot of little clues - Kenendy right away-Lucy-boy still not used to being 'American' using the word bloody, her dislike of werewolves (cause ew, and cause super-smell), etc... :-D

**PS: I loved reading some reviews on speculations about the Real!Kennedy and all I can say is I laid a clue here and that you might want to re-read what exactly happened when Sirius was kidnapped…

** Chapter 51 was where Luke talked about Jenny Asp getting her heart broken by Kennedy.


	84. Ye Olde 'Save the World' Plan

Ye Olde 'Save the World' Plan

A/N:

And we're back! It's been a long break, sorry about that. The well had runneth dry and it took me a while to get back into writing. Anyways, there are some new chapters that will be posted over this next week so I hope you enjoy! The story is nearing the end so things are about to get cra-zay!

Mad crazy thanks to Greywizard for being a behemoth beta :) Commas and semi-colons are my frenemies, and he helps rein them in ;)

And (to quote Shulik) "a shameless plug" – COA voting at Twisting the Hellmouth is still going on so I encourage you to vote for your fav stories! 'Course, I've got some noms too, if you wanna think of me ;)

Willow hummed to herself happily as she rearranged books in the bookcase of the first floor study. For some reason, this past week she had been full of energy. It _almost_ felt like a high that she associated with magic but Kennedy assured her it was probably just because they were in a new relationship, and that Ken felt it, too. Which made sense, she thought. After all, it's not like she was even engaging in any dark magics like she had last year.

Of course, she was tempted to find an anti-nightmare spell. Her nightmares had been consistent for two weeks now and it was driving her crazy. Last night, she dreamed that she was back in the park that Tara loved and, just like when Sunnydale turned into a musical, Tara sang that 'I'm Under Your Spell' song to her. But… the words had been off. Willow couldn't remember exactly what they had been but she woke up feeling really worried.

"Hey, Hyper Girl!" Buffy greeted her cheerfully as she walked into the room. "You been drinkin' coffee again?"

"Coffee? No," Willow giggled as she shrugged. "Just in a really good mood, I guess."

"Ah," Buffy said as she gave Willow a thoughtful look. "Is this 'cause of a certain potential slayer?"

Willow blushed and sat across from Buffy at the study table. "Yeah," she admitted with a cheesy grin as a warm feeling of love washed over her at the mention of her beloved's name.

Buffy smiled gently and leaned over to squeeze Willow's hand. "Well, I'm glad she makes you happy Will." Something in her eyes made Willow wonder if Buffy was being completely sincere, but she chose to overlook it.

"Thanks, Buff," she smiled. "Whatcha doin' here, anyways? I thought places with books gave you the wiggins?" she joked.

Rolling her eyes, she playfully slapped Willow's hand. "Whatever, you know that me and books can sometimes be friends…" she trailed off with a guilty look before flashing a grin and continuing. "Actually, I wanted to see if you were free to meet with us about the scythe. Any research on yours and Kennedy's end turn up anything?"

"No," Willow sighed in disappointment. "And sure, I can meet. When and where?"

"Upstairs, and now. I'm going crazy just sitting around waiting for the next attack. I want us to find some info, figure out a plan, and go take out the bad guys," Buffy smiled grimly.

Willow patted Buffy's hand in a comforting manner. "I know, Buff." And she did know. While these last two weeks had been rather blissful for her, because of Kennedy, she was still scared as to what may happen the next time the First makes made its move.

The two friends made their way up to the second floor library where Faith, Luna, Spike, and Giles were already waiting. As everyone got settled, they gave their research reports – which, unfortunately, consisted of 'We know the Guardians made it, we can feel the essence of the slayer in there, and it's something that the First is afraid of.'

"So basically, we don't have squat," Faith drawled dejectedly as she leaned back in her oak chair.

"Luna, are you sure you can't think of anything?" Giles asked in an almost desperate voice,; so and clearly distressed by having a powerful weapon at their fingertips, but having no idea what it could be used for.

Luna shrugged sadly. "I know it was made soon after the Shadow Men turned Sineya into a slayer – I've seen that in my dreams – and I know she somehow used it to defeat _A Kwanza Bovu_ when it first tried entering in the world in corporeal form. And it's clear that the essence of the slayer resides within it, but other than that, I do not know."

"I wish your grandmum coulda left you an instruction manual, Crescent," Spike commented.

"Me, too," Luna agreed with a small sigh as she rearranged herself to sit cross-legged in the oak chair.

A period of silence overtook the group as each person pondered potential solutions for their dilemma. Buffy appeared noticeably nervous at whatever thoughts were whirling in her mind as she fiddled loosely with her pen.

"There's something I've been wondering about," Buffy began hesitatingly as she looked up to face her friends.

"What is it?" Spike asked in concern as he gave her a loving look – one that went unnoticed by all except Faith and Luna. It was clear to them that there was a strong amount of emotion between the vampire and the slayer and both hoped their respective friends would find a resolution, one way or another.

"When the First approached me before, it said that a small part of it lived in the hearts of each enemy that I've defeated, but soon, it would walk this earth and be able to enter every man, woman, and child," she said, referring to the run-in she had had while picking up a new potential on the edge of town earlier that week.

"Anyways, that sounds a lot like what happened before, in Luna's vision of Sineya defeating the First and expelling it deep into hell after The First did all that evil-spirit possession business… And I'm almost starting to wonder if the only way we can really beat this thing is if it does materialize. After all, how do we defeat something incorporeal?" Buffy asked thoughtfully.

"Yeah, but don't we _not_ want it to get to that point?" Willow asked nervously. "I kinda like my hell in just a mouth under the high school and not, ya know, all across the earth."

"You have a point, Buffy," Giles mused as he routinely reflexively cleaned his glasses. "None of my research indicates how we can banish the First and only Luna's vision gives us hope that there _is_ a way to do so – at least for a couple thousand years. If anything, at this point, all we can hope is to figure out a way to kill the Turok-Han lurking under the Seal and hope that will end the First's efforts."

"Yeah," Faith agreed with Giles. "Plus, B., last time Luna's ancestors banished this thing, they had a whole tribe of magic users. We have about fifty barely-trained teenage girls, a vamp, a couple magic-y people, a carpenter, and an old dude," Faith said doubtfully as she jerked a thumb in Giles' direction. "Not to mention, besides the First, there's hundreds of cave-man vamps festering under the seal."

"Hey!" Giles said resentfully at the 'old dude' comment. "I'll have you know that I am still quite useful in a battle," he grumbled.

Willow felt a giggle bubbling within her and she tried to squelch it; between this and Anya's comment several months ago, she made a mental note not to knock Giles for his age!

"Slayer number two is right, luv." Faith shot Spike a dirty look at that remark; since her and Buffy's moment with the Slayer Scythe, they had formed a partnership and Faith certainly didn't like being called 'number two'. "We aren't much of an army. Only way these little girls are gonna get any power is if Faith dies or you both die – and that doesn't sound like a good plan to me," Spike snorted in derision.

Buffy gazed thoughtfully at Spike as she took a sip of her water while Willow spoke up.

"Well, maybe we can make a super-strength potion? You know, give it to all the girls then go fight those uber-vamps?" Willow offered tentatively.

"Except that we have no idea how our magic may work in the First's lair under the seal," Giles pointed out. "Not to mention, even if the girls have super strength, they would still be highly vulnerable to injuries, just like any other normal human."

"What if…" Buffy trailed off as her eyes focused on a far away place.

"Buffy?" Spike questioned quietly.

Her lips curved into a knowing smile as she looked each one of them in the eye. "What if we could give those girls something better than a potion? What if Faith and I didn't have to die for the potentials to become empowered?"

"Buffy, that doesn't make any sense," Giles said in a confused voice.

"Yeah, that kinda goes against everything we've come to know on the whole 'one girl in all the world' business," Willow added with a shrug.

Faith and Buffy shared a look as the two slayers, sitting together, mirrored each other's postures and leaned close to each other.

"You're right," Faith said to Buffy in an awe-shocked voice. "She's right," Faith repeated as she turned to everyone else. "You said it yourself, Will. 'One girl in all the world' – well, we already blew that to hell…May as well go all the way," she smirked.

"Of course," Luna whispered as she stared at the slayers in understanding.

Spike glanced around at everyone. "Will somebody please bloody explain what you lot are prattlin' on about?" he asked in an irritated voice; frustrated that he wasn't yet in on the secret.

"From now on, every girl in the world who might be a Slayer will be a Slayer," Buffy smiled victoriously.

Faith shared a smile with Buffy. "Every girl who could have that power will have that power."

"How?" Wilow gasped; feeling both excited at their conviction and confused as to how it could happen.

Buffy smiled victoriously and her eyes glowed with excitement. "We've been saying it this whole time that the sycthe holds the essence of the slayer. Well, why not release that essence into every potential slayer?"

"Buffy—" Willow started to interrupt – after all, this was crazy talk!

"I'm tired of playing by other people's rules," Buffy said with world weary eyes that glinted with rebellion. "Long ago, the Shadow Men dictated who the slayer was and even now, the last few years of my life, people have been telling me what I am capable of or not capable of. This time, I think _we_ need to make our own rules."

The room was silent as its occupants took in Buffy's speech.

"Hell, yes," Spike said with a wicked grin. "I think this sounds great. Power up the wannabes and let's lay waste to every demon under that seal!"

Buffy gave him a thankful smile; not realizing until then how much his opinion had begun to matter to her.

"But…how? How can we do a spell that big?" Willow asked hesitatntly, already knowing the answer.

"You're our girl, Will. You always have been," Buffy said confidently with a penetrating stare.

"M-me?" she stuttered as she raised her hands in surprise. "Buff, this calls for some serious magic. I mean, a spell of _this magnitude_? I just don't know if I'm capable."

"You can do it," Luna said confidently beside her. "You're very powerful, Willow. If you like, I could help you. Perhaps with my Guardian connection to the weapon, we can siphon the slayer essence out easier."

Willow bit her lip as she felt a wave of nervousness crash over her. "But I haven't done a big spell like that since…well, since I tried to destroy the world. And, um, I like the world now and don't want to kill anyone by accident," she said in a small voice.

"Willow, you have grown a lot over this past year and if it is any consolation, I strongly believe that you will have the self-control to do this spell. It is an excellent idea and we could use a leg up in this endeavor," Giles said.

"Yeah, but, spell! BIG spell," Willow held her arms apart to demonstrate the gigantism of their request. "I don't know if I am ready for a spell like that; I hardly do that many spells, anymore."

"Yeah, Red, but don't you and Kennedy do a lot of spells together? Surely you've been practicing," Faith drawled with knowing eyes.

Pursing her lips, Willow thought about that. Yes, she and Kennedy had been doing a lot of spells – especially in the past two weeks – but they were never anything major. Even the warding spell that had initially frightened her had turned out to be nothing much after Kennedy explained it better. Oddly, she couldn't remember the details of that spell at that em moment… but likely, it was because the spell was so minor. "Well…"

"Will, if you can do this, we might be able to wipe out those vamps and maybe explore that underground cavern to figure out a better way to finish off the First," Buffy said in a hush, urgent tone. "We need you."

Willow sighed as she felt everyone looking expectantly at her. Maybe with Luna's – and Kennedy's, of course – help she really could do this. And hey! Stopping the First sounded like a good idea…

"Okay," she finally acquiesced.

"Thank you," Buffy said appreciatively.

"One moment," Giles piped up with a raise of his finger after a thoughtful moment. "I do think that is a _brilliant_ plan Buffy." A sly grinned worked on his face as he thought of how horrified Quentin Travers would have been at the idea.

"But," he continued in a more sober tone,. "Wwhile having fifty slayers would be greatly helpful, that still would not be a match for hundreds of Turok-Han. Even if my ine and Remus' theories from previous discussion are true – that the First may de have 'powered up' the Turok-Han he sent after you and Spike, just like he infused Caleb with more power – and that the Turok-Han are perhaps easier to kill than in your previous experience, we are still talking about fighting _hundreds_ of them. The odds are frightfully against us."

"Please," Faith snorted. "B and I have never been one for the odds. We'll take those bitches down."

Giles looked like he was fighting not to roll his eyes as he turned a heavy Watcher-y glare upon Faith. "Perhaps we shall, as you say, 'take those bitches down', Faith – but at what cost? Are you willing to sacrifice all those girls? Yourself?"

"Hey, I'll do what needs to get done," Faith assured him. "As for the girls," she shrugged,. "Iit's the way of the world. Slayers fight, slayers die."

"No," Buffy spoke in a harsh, hushed voice. "No more girls need to die." She let out a small breath of air and avoided everyone's gaze. "Too many have died. And yeah, I doubt we'll get out of this with everyone unscathed, but Giles is right – we need more resources."

"But who?" Willow queried. "Thanks to Luke double-crossing us, we can't trust the wizarding people." As the word 'wizarding' crossed her lips, Willow felt a pang in her chest as Sirius' face popped into her mind. Luckily, almost immediately, the thought of him was vanquished and replaced by the happier face of Kennedy.

"Good question," Buffy smiled grimly. "How about this? Will, you and Luna research and put together a spell to draw out the Slayer essence and I'll recall get us – plus our 'leadership team' from the Vineyard Battle – together to figure out details."

"That sounds like a good plan," Giles affirmed. "Although I am curious, Buffy. When do you plan on engaging in this battle?"

Buffy nibbled her bottom lip as she snuck a look at Faith and then at Spike. "Well, I know something this big needs a lot of planning – I don't want to have another Vineyard incident," she said with a shiver. "But it seems like the First always finds out our plans, and I feel like with this we need to take it by surprise. So… three days? Tops?" she asked in a questioning voice.

"Sounds good to me. I'm ready to get rowdy," Faith grinned as she cracked her knuckles eagerly.

"Three days? Super big spell in three days?" Willow squeaked.

Luna laid a hand over Willow's. "You can do it, Willow," she smiled.

Willow gulped nervously and hoped that Luna was right.

* * *

Several hours later, their fifteen-person leadership team met in the library. Kennedy, Rona, and Vi represented the potentials and were looking apprehensive about the topic of the meeting – all of them were told it concerned a final battle against the First and after their previous battles, they were instantly worried about what might come to pass. Their resident magic users were there as well – Willow, Remus, Anya, Dawn, and Luna – along with Xander, Robin, and Connor. It had been remarked by Remus, who had made himself responsible for Connor's well-being at the house, that the powerful teenager may prove useful – never mind the boost of self-esteem he would get from attending a leadership meeting and treated like an adult. Additionally, Buffy and Faith sat together at the head of the table, with Spike at Buffy's right side, with Giles at the other end.

"Hear ye, hear ye, this meeting shall be called to order!" Xander's voice boomed out as his magical eye whirled around the room, finally resting at Vi at the other end of the table. "Hey, Vi, that means you! Stop making with the googly eyes at The Destroyer," he crackedteased.

Vi's face immediately flushed scarlet as she stilled herself at Xander's comment and made a surprised squeaking noise. Quickly, she became extremely interested in her nails while Connor just looked around at Vi and Xander in confusion. Not understanding what Xander meant by his comment, Connor just shrugged and turned his attention to the head of the table. Rona glared at Xander on her friend's behalf and wrapped a shoulder around Vi and whispered something amusing into the red-head's ear.

"Right," Buffy drawled with a smirk. "Thank *ye*, Xander."

"My pleasure, m'lady," he said chivalrously with a nod in his friend's direction.

Buffy rolled her eyes with a smile and then started off the meeting in a practical voice. "Alright, everyone accounted for?" she asked as her eyes traveled around the room."

"Wait, where's Geek Boy?" Rona asked suddenly.

"Ro-_na_," Vi hissed as she elbowed her fellow potential.

"Oh," Rona squeezed her eyes shut in embarrassment and clapped a hand to her forehead. "Sorry, I forgot. I guess I just got so used to the little pipsqueak being everywhere."

"Don't worry 'bout it, Rona. It is weirdly quieter without the Andrew-chatter in the background," Buffy stated with an understanding look.

"Can't say it was a surprise, having the pipsqueak run back to Mexico," Spike commented. "Though I wonder if any Bringers got him along the way."

"Let's hope not," Buffy said sharply. "If they did, who knows what info they could have gotten off him. Let's just hope that since it's been a week since we've heard anything, he's somewhere drinking margaritas and taking siestas."

"And if the Geeky Geek of the West has spilled the beans, I'm guessing you have a plan to take out the First before we all get slashed into pretty party streamers?" Anya inquired of Buffy.

Buffy smiled; a true smile of sincere happiness that was recognized by everyone at the table. "Yes, we do."

She went on to re-cap the earlier conversation, amid many interruptions and disbelieving exclamations, until finally she came round circle. "So, what Giles brought up is, we need more than just fifty slayers to take out the Turok-Han."

"Wait, wait, wait," Kennedy interrupted. "We're going to take on hundreds on those vampires after you turn all of us into slayers? What will that do? The First will still come for us."

"Maybe," Buffy said slyly. "Maybe not. Look, underneath that Seal, the First has been building an army – but there has to be more down there than that. So I'm thinking, after we take out those vamps, we see where that underground cavern goes. Maybe it'll lead us straight to hell, but maybe it'll also take us to the First's headquarters. If we can find the source of the First's power, we might be able to banish it for a couple more thousand years, like Luna's ancestors did."

"But, but that is insane!" Kennedy shouted in worried disbelief. "There's no way we'll survive! We'll be walking right into a trap!"

Buffy winced at the word 'trap' before she shook her head fervently in disagreement. "No," she said in a hard voice. "No more traps. Listen, if we wait up here, we'll die. But if we take the fight _to_ the First, we just might live – and save the world while we're at it."

"So we'll be slayers?" Rona asked, her mind still wheeling in circles on that predominant idea. "All of us?"

"All of you," Faith grinned. "Red and Luna are workin' on a spell to upgrade ya."

All eyes turned to Willow and Luna, Kennedy in particular was eyeing them sharply.

Willow's face flamed under their heavy stares. "Um, yeah. Luna and I have spent the last couple hours researching spells and, while it still needs lots of work, we've found some spells of a similar nature – spells that draw out the magic from an enchanted object – and I think we can produce something within Buffy's time limit."

"Three days, right?" Xander asked for clarification.

"Yeah," Buffy nodded.

"So…How do we 'normal folk' get to play?" Robin asked thoughtfully, his mind already mentally unpacking his weapons' chest.

"That's where you all come in. Way I see it, Faith, Spike, and I will go under the Seal. At the same time, so the First won't expect a fight right after some major magic like that, Willow and Luna will be on the first floor doing the slayer activation spell—"

"—What about me? I want to be with Willow and help with the spell," Kennedy interrupted.

"Kennedy, you're gonna be a slayer," Buffy pointed out. "We'll need you down there."

Kennedy thought hard for a moment before she countered. "True, but you'll need the scythe when I'm done with it, won't you? I could run it down there once the spell is complete."

Buffy looked thoughtfully at Willow before nodding. "Alright, that makes sense. And Faith and I were thinking that everyone else – Xand, Giles, Remus, Anya, and Robin – could hold the fort on the first floor. That way, if any vamps get past us you guys can take them down before they escape into the rest of the world."

"Whoa!" Dawn said suddenly. "What about me?"

Buffy stilled and took a deep breath, not looking forward to this argument. "Dawnie, you'll wait back at the house."

"What?" the teenage witch shouted in outrage. "But I'm a witch! Hellooo! I can be helpful!"

"No," Buffy snapped. "Dawn, just," Buffy sighed in frustration as she glanced at the others watching her. "We'll talk about it later, _alone_."

"No way," she said stubbornly. "I'd rather fight with an audience 'cause I know people here would agree with me."

"I don't," Spike snorted. "Niblet, you should be home safe."

"Well I agree with Dawn," Connor suddenly spoke up. "Which, by the way, you didn't mention my name. Won't I be fighting with you?"

"Um." Buffy's mind went blank. She didn't know Connor that well, but knew he was a very angsty teen – although apparently he was on much better behavior here than L.A., according to Remus. "Well Connor you're only seventeen—"

"So? So are Rona and Vi!"

"_And_ you're Angel's kid. No _way_ am I going to be responsible for taking my ex-boyfriend's teenage son into hell with me," Buffy stated decisively.

Connor's eyebrows jumped up to an unbelievable height. "You dated my _dad_?" he asked in shock.

Buffy's face pinched with uneasiness. "Oh, heh. No one told you that?"

"No," Connor said with a glare, specifically in Remus and his fellow teenagers' directions. "That is so gross, he's _old_," Connor stated, still shocked that the Vampire Slayer once dated his vampiric father.

"Wha-what?" Buffy sputtered while most at the table snickered, especially Xander.

"Yeah, but Buffy likes 'em like that – she is dating Spike, after all," Rona grinned.

Buffy glanced at Spike sharply before avoiding eye contact. "Wha—? No! Jeez," she huffed. "Can we stop talkin' bout my love life and get back on the big 'Save the World Plan'?"

"Save the World Plan – sounds like a movie. 'Cept, of course, this would be Part Seven," Xander joked with a wink – and a winking magical eye blinking was far more eerie to Buffy than one would think.

"You brought up the love life with Angel," Vi pointed out with a smile of her own, eager to stick up for Connor and impress him in any way possible. She thought Connor was adorable in that shy-mysterious way, plus he was obviously deadly strong which she thought was a turn-on, too… guess she really was a potential slayer!

"Connor, you'll need to ask your dad," Buffy decided, really not wanting to continue this awkward conversation. Seeing that Dawn was about to speak, she held up a warning finger. "_Later,_ Dawn." Her sister crossed her arms and slumped back into her chair with an annoyed expression.

"Actually, maybe Connor speaking to his father isn't a bad idea, Buffy. Perhaps Angel and his associates could come help us," Remus suggested.

"No!" Buffy, Spike, and Connor all vehemently disagreed. Buffy did _not_ want to ask her ex for help, Spike sure as bloody hell didn't want the Great Poofter to be pawing Buffy, and Connor had no intention on spending quality time with dear old dad.

"Jinx!" Dawn said suddenly with a wicked smile.

Buffy rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to begin speaking… and suddenly found herself unable to make a sound. Likewise, Spike and Connor began exhibiting the same symptoms.

Realizing what her sister had done, Buffy glared and tossed a wadded up piece of paper at her sister, who deftly moved out of the way and then proceeded to stick her tongue out at Buffy.

"Dawn," Giles sighed as he rubbed his temples, silently cursing himself for not remembering to bring any painkillers. He really should know by now that all 'Scooby' meetings required painkillers of some kind – preferably a dry Scotch.

"Dawn," Remus said in a patented teacher warning tone.

"Oh, fine," Dawn grumbled before she used her wand to cast a reversal spell.

"Now, why shouldn't we invite Angel and the others? You said yourself that we could use all the help we could get. They would be useful, especially since we're down one wizard." Remus pointedly gave Kennedy a dirty look at this remark, still bitter with the witch for messing up his friend's first real relationship. Next to her, Willow looked like Remus had struck her and the werewolf felt a bit guilty that she had caught some of the ire directed at Kennedy. Yet, as much as he did adore Willow, he was also upset with the witch for her, in his opinion, foolishness.

"Well, I'm sure Angel is real busy over in L.A.," Buffy countered, although she didn't sound too sure of herself.

"I'm definitely not in the Dead Boy Fan Club, but even I think we should call in the troops, Buff. Especially if asking the wizarding world for help isn't a possibility thanks to Luke," Xander opined.

"Yeah, B. We could use the help," Faith added.

Buffy glanced at her sister slayer and nodded reluctantly. "Alright, I'll call him. Unless, um, you want to call him, Connor?" she asked hopefully.

Connor made a noise of derision as he shook his head. "No way."

"Fine," Buffy grumbled.

"Good. So that will give us," Xander paused as he counted in his head,. "Tthat'll give us five extra people…What else can we scrounge up?"

What else indeed? Luckily, as the conversation progressed, ideas began sparking throughout the room and eventually they had made a list of quite a few 'things' to scrounge up for the final battle against the First.

* * *

A/N:

Please leave a review and lemme know your thoughts – think this is a better plan than the original? ;)

Thanks for reading everyone! I've got mad love for ya. Fellow Americans, hope you're having a most excellent Labor Day weekend!


	85. Preparations

Preparations

A/N:

Mad crazy thanks to Greywizard for looking this chappie over!

* * *

The day after their war strategy meeting, Xander Harris, Robin Wood, Spike the Bloody, and Dawn Summers were peering suspiciously past a barbed wire chain-linked fence that was situated far from the center of Sunnydale.

"You think anyone's still there?" Dawn asked in a hushed voice.

Spike sniffed the air and while Robin seemed fairly disgusted by the display of supernatural ability, he said nothing. He didn't _like_ the stupid vampire or anything, but after the offering of his mother's coat, Robin had finally come to peace with Spike.

"Naw, I don't smell anyone," the ensouled vampire commented.

"Thank god they got out of Sunnydale when everyone else did," Xander sighed in relief. "C'mon, let's go," he said as he gestured towards Dawn, who was sitting in the front seat of the rental van they had 'borrowed'.

Dawn screwed up her face in concentration and said, _"Alohamora,"_ as she pointed at the giant padlock clasped around the fence gate. _"Locomotor_ fence," she said once the gate was unlocked and she gave Xander a satisfied smile as the gate swung open.

"See?" she said with a wide smile. "I _am_ helpful!"

"Sure ya are, Niblet," Spike said affectionately as he rubbed the top of her head from his position in the back seat.

"Spike!" Dawn grumbled as she swatted his hand. "You'll mess up my hair!"

"Yeah, 'cause there are so many blokes around to look pretty for," Spike smirked. Then, as if realizing he could be wrong, he quickly asked Dawn tentatively, "There aren't any, right? You're not tryin' to date Angel's broody kid, are ya?"

"Oh, god no!" Dawn said in revulsion, with a fervent shake of her head. "I mean, he's _okay_ if you get past his lack of social skills, but Angel's his dad, and Buffy is his ex, and that is just all sorts of creepy! It would be like dating my _brother_," she added with a shudder.

"Yeah, besides Spike, Dawnie's boy toy is across the pond in merry old England," Xander grinned from behind the wheel. "So, she won't have to worry about her cougar looks for a while!"

"Xander!" Dawn shouted as she playfully slapped his arm. "Harry's just my friend. Besides, he's younger and, and, he's just my friend," she finished lamely.

"Just a friend?" Robin grinned at his (former) student. "That doesn't sound like just a friend."

Dawn scowled at him. "You know, on account of school bein' closed cause of the big boomin' evil, you're not technically my principal anymore and, thus, I can totally do mean, evil, magical pranks on you."

"Right," Robin chuckled. "Like me being a principal ever stopped anyone from pranking me."

Xander held up a hand as he pulled outside the large rectangular building. "Guys, we're here. So let's hold off the pranking threats until after our van is full of shiny weapons."

A gleam of mischief entered Dawn's eye as she wrung her hands in excitement. "This is _so_ cool!"

After they got out of the van, Robin gave her a suspicious look. "I'm here to help steal these things and Xander has a clear reason for being here, and even Spike being here makes sense on account of his super strength. But why exactly are you here, Dawn? I mean, your magic isn't quite powerful enough to handle most of this stuff."

She smirked and fluffed her hair importantly. "I bribed Buffy that I wouldn't embarrass her when Angel arrives tomorrow morning. I mean, there was no _way_ I was going to miss out on a guilt-free stealing extravaganza!"

Robin silently rolled his eyes. Sometimes, he really should know better than to ask the Summers women questions.

"So, what do you think?" Willow asked Kennedy hopefully after the brunette had finished reading the spell. On the opposite side of the library study table, Luna watched the witch's reaction with interest.

"I…wow," was all Kennedy could say for a moment as she re-read the spell to siphon the essence of the slayer from the Scythe and activate all the potentials. "This is really, really good, Will. So this is what you two have been working on all night?"

"Well, we did have a momentary break when the _Soña Faeries_ bespelled us to sleep for several hours on top of the table, but other than that, yes," Luna clarified.

"Ri-ight," Kennedy drawled with an arched brow at the blond. "So, you think this will work?"

Willow exchanged a look with Luna and nodded. "We based it off similar spells, so yeah, it should do the job," she said with a nervous flutter in her voice. "I mean, it's basically the same concept, just on a much, much, much bigger level. The key is really going to be power, ya know?"

"So, does the spell need both of you…or me, even?" her girlfriend asked nonchalantly as she studied the words a third time.

Willow nibbled her lower lip nervously and began playing with the hem of her shirt. "Um, I don't know but Luna's going to help me just in ca—"

"Willow," Luna said sternly in a voice that surpassed her years. "You will be fine. I'll only be there to help, because honestly, I still don't understand how to access my Guardian powers. But you will be enough; you're very powerful, you know."

"I know," Willow said glumly with a sigh. "That's what worries me."

"Hey," Kennedy said as she rubbed her back reassuringly. "I'll be there to help you. You'll be fine."

"You'll keep me safe?" Willow said with a small smile as her eyes searched Kennedy's deep brown ones.

"Always," Kennedy answered with a confident smile.

Lucius Malfoy stood in front of his master an hour later with his head bowed, knowing that the silence after he informed the First of the Slayer's plans was

* * *

not a good sign. Quite frankly, he couldn't believe how quickly all their plans were dissolving before his very eyes! The Slayer's plan was unfortunately very good, and while he was unsure what Buffy would find after they destroyed the Turok-Han in the caverns underneath the Seal, Lucius was sure they would find some way to stop his master.

Then, once he fell, Lucius would have nothing. The world – his family – thought him to be dead. Even if he did come back suddenly alive, the questions directed towards him regarding his actions as an 'Unspeakable' could very well ruin him. Then he would be powerless, perhaps even knutless.

"Tell me, what thoughts flit through that cunning brain of yours, Lucius?" his master finally spoke in the cool, feminine voice of Buffy Summers.

Lucius jerked his head up in surprise at being asked his opinion. Of course, he was used to Voldemort asking for the opinions of his Death Eaters many years ago – and then cursing those who held opinions that he didn't care for. Indeed, he would have to tread carefully.

"My master, I am unsure what to think," he spoke truthfully. "This plan of the Slayer's is quite well thought out. If, indeed, they are able to activate all the potentials and use their other resources, your Turok-Han could be destroyed easily. After that, I would not know how you could rebuild."

There was silence for a moment…and then wicked laughter that rolled over Lucius' skin and left goose bumps in its wake.

"My…my Lord?" Lucius asked hesitantly; not quite seeing the humor in the situation.

"Don't you see, my slippery friend?" the First chuckled malevolently. "This is _exactly_ the sort of situation that I knew you would come in handy for. At last, I will be able to use you, my final key servant, in ultimately destroying the Slayer line."

His mouth dropped silently and Lucius quickly tried to see where the thoughts of his master were going. "But how? Do you wish for me to murder them in their sleep?" After all, that made quite a bit of sense. Merlin knows that Lucius had been wondering why he had been sitting on his laurels for almost five months without taking any obvious action.

"No," the First said as a slow, terrifying grin stretched across her face. "No, Lucius, I want to murder them myself. I want them to enter the Seal where I will finally have them at my mercy – and I will personally be able to kill each and every one of those do-gooders."

Lucius' forehead crinkled in thought. "You will personally kill them…? You mean… the preparations are complete?"

"Not quite," his master said sourly with a grim look. "The Slayer has taken action sooner that I had expected, so my body will not be complete. However, my spirit – thanks to your ritual last week – finally has the power to enter something. Unfortunately, not the ability to enter a human, but my Bringers are forging something that will be almost as good – perhaps even better."

He blinked in wonder at that statement. Perhaps there was hope, after all, that he would finally obtain the power that he had been working so hard for. Soon he, Lucius Abraxas Malfoy, would control kingdoms of men and millions would fear him.

"What about the spell, my Lord? What should I do about the Dark One?" If he were honest with himself, Lucius quite hoped that his master would not order him to kill the witch after all his hard work of converting her. Besides, once he pulled her fully to the side of dark magic, she would make an excellent Queen of Darkness to be his Kingly counterpart.

"Don't you remember that prophecy, Lucius?" the First smirked. "Now it makes much more sense."

"Of course," Lucius whispered. _"Her Spell will go unsaid, only to result in bloodshed,"_ he quoted from the prophecy he had heard the night he had killed Sophia Asp. "So I must stop her from saying the spell?"

"Hmm. You will stop her from saying _that_ particular spell, yes," his master affirmed with a cluck of her tongue. "But I see this as the perfect opportunity to steal the essence of the Slayer – and not just from the Scythe, either."

Lucius smiled evilly as he comprehended what his master was thinking. "So we will change the spell to take the Slayer abilities from Buffy and Faith."

"Yes – but the question is, will your witch do it? It is against her very nature to do a spell that goes against those she calls her friends."

He pondered on it for a moment before nodding confidently. "Yes, it will be done. I have increasingly gained control over her mind. Last week's ritual was a test, as you know. By getting her to agree to slaughter an animal – even if it was to supposedly help her friends – was the first sign of success. More so, she remembers little from that day, due to the powers of the ring. After another week of our daily spells, I have more than enough control over the Dark One to modify her little activation spell."

"Of course," Lucius added thoughtfully. "Where will all that power go, once we take it?"

His master smiled brightly in that way that Buffy Summers often did and clapped her hands soundlessly. "Excellent question, Lucy-boy. And it is one that I think you will greatly like the answer to," she informed him with a significant look.

A shiver of anticipation coursed through his body as Lucius Malfoy realized that soon he would be the most powerful wizard on earth – both magically and physically.

* * *

Remus and Anya were in the basement hovering over a simmering cauldron as they eyed the green liquid suspiciously. The large, iron cauldron held gallons of the thick substance that bubbled loudly and issued light green smoke rising into the air.

"It looks gross," Anya sniffed. "And smells worse," she said with an annoyed look as she pinched her nose.

"Yes, well, according to the instructions in the potions book you owl-ordered from Columbia Village, it should look like this," Remus remarked with a smile at Anya. "Besides, this potion will be worth it."

She rolled her eyes and began putting away the potion ingredients and supplies. "I still cannot believe you got the idea for it from one of Xander's stupid video games – and that there actually was a spell for it."

"You have to admire the Muggle imagination," Remus grinned in anticipation as he thought of the potion's effects in two days.

"Yeah," Anya responded half-heartedly.

Remus noted her lackluster response and took a moment to observe his girlfriend – 'yes, his _girlfriend_,' he thought with a goofy smile. A part of him had a hard time forgiving his actions towards Anya when he left without word after the Vineyard battle, but ever since he apologized and they cleared the air, things had been better than ever. He knew he was only inviting disaster – falling in love with a woman right before the potential end of the world – but nothing had made him happier in his entire life.

Of course, there was one thing that would make him happier – if Anya told him that she loved him. Remus knew that she felt the same way – he saw it in her eyes when he had confessed to her his love – but, for some reason, she was still keeping a partial wall between them. He knew that the debacle with Xander had broken her and he was trying to pretend like it didn't matter…but it did.

"Anya?" he asked quietly as he walked towards the woman as she jerkily placed some mouse tails into a plastic bag. Her back was to him but he now noticed that her shoulders were shaking slightly. Without a word, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled Anya back against his chest; she responded immediately by grasping his forearms tightly.

"Anya," he said in a soft voice against her ear. "What's the matter?"

"What's the matter?" she shouted as she whirled around and looked at him angrily, her eyes sparkling with tears. "Dammit, Remus, are you slow? How can you not know what is wrong?"

Remus refrained from making any sudden movements and held his hands up in surrender. Anya's sudden mood changes always called for caution, and not for the first time, he thanked Merlin that he had been granted with the gift of patience – he supposed that was part of what made him and Anya compatible.

"Perhaps I am a bit slow, luv, but I don't quite know what has you upset at the moment," he stated calmly.

Anya set her jaw stubbornly and smacked his chest.

"Ow! What was that for?" he asked incredulously.

"We're going to die, you ninny! That's what the matter is! I'm finally starting to get used to being a human and I finally found someone that I care about again, and we're all going to die in two days!" While she had started out screaming, by the end of her tirade, Anya was sobbing softly.

Remus' heart squeezed in his chest. "Anya, please don't cry," he pleaded as he pulled her into his arms and rocked her silently. "Things are different this time, it won't be like the Vineyard. We're prepared – if anything, we are, according to Xander, going for 'overkill'. We'll be fine."

"But how do you know?" Anya asked with a tear-streaked face as she looked up into his eyes. "I've lived for over a thousand years and I've seen war and death. I know that humans die, especially in battle. It's annoying and it's stupid, but it's true."

"I know because…" Remus swallowed heavily as he looked down at her demoralized expression. "I know because I feel like I just found you and there's no way I'll lose you so soon. I don't care if I have to fight off dragons and basilisks – I will keep you safe," he vowed.

"Oh Remus," Anya sighed as she bit her trembling lip. "I…"

Remus held his breath as she trailed off, hoping he would hear the words that he had longed to hear.

"…Thank you," she gave him a watery smile before she pulled him down for a kiss.

He was glad that Anya closed her eyes when she kissed him – otherwise, she would have seen a rather dejected expression on her lover's face.

* * *

The late afternoon had been filled with a great deal of shouting between Dawn and Buffy – the latter had even threatened to have Xander actually drug her sister and drive her off to Canada! – but eventually they had settled their issues. Thanks to support from Remus and Faith, Buffy had (very) reluctantly agreed to allow Dawn to stay for the upcoming battle. It helped that Luna was young and also a witch, so Dawn had argued that she needed to help watch over Luna since Spike would be fighting in the cavern.

Of course, while Dawn was very pleased by the fact that she would be with her family – not just Buffy, but all the Scoobies were considered her family – in what could be their last fight, she was also frightened. After all, only an idiot wouldn't be scared. She couldn't help but wonder if she'd even see Janice, Kit, and Carlos again, all of whom were currently living with relatives in far away cities. Not to mention, there were all of her new wizarding friends, Harry, Hermione, and Ron.

Now, Dawn wasn't an overly dramatic person – well, alright, she had been two years ago but she'd outgrown that phase – but a part of her hated that her friends might be left wondering whatever happened to her if things went bad. The idea of writing a 'last letter' to all of her friends was a daunting idea so, instead, she decided to just write Harry. After all, they were already pen pals.

'_And maybe something more?_' a sly thought whispered in her mind. No… Dawn didn't _think_ she thought of Harry like that. Sure, he was good-looking, even if he was two years younger, and he had become a good friend of hers in the last four months – maybe even her best friend. After all, it's not like Janice or Kit could ever really understand her, thanks to her weird life. But Harry did – he got what it was like to have a Big Bad hot on your trail and people you loved in danger.

Dawn shook those thoughts out of her head and sighed. It really didn't matter what she felt or didn't feel for Harry – it was very possible that she may never see him again.

Xander took a deep breath as he picked up the telephone and began dialing the international code for England. Then he quickly slammed the receiver down before he could finish and ran a hand desperately through his hair. For the last ten minutes, he had engaged in this dance and he just couldn't bring himself to call Tonks. After all, he couldn't very well tell her what they were planning on doing. He remembered what had happened the last time he had made a dramatic gesture before an apocalypse and _that_ had not turned out well.

At the same time, he couldn't imagine facing hundreds of vampires with his best friends without hearing her sweet, cute accented voice just once more.

His mind made up, Xander picked up the phone once more and began dialing. He had grown to care for Tonks a lot, in spite of the fact that the majority of their relationship had been over the phone or through letters. Or, perhaps, that was the reason why he felt so strongly for her. His other major relationships – Cordelia and Anya – were both incredibly physical, and while he got to know both of them very well, his connection with Tonks was incredibly strong because all they did was talk. She didn't know him better than Willow or Buffy, but she knew a lot about him.

"Hello?" an older woman's voice answered.

"Oh, hello Mrs. Tonks," Xander said in his best 'phone' voice. "Is Tonks there? I know our phone date isn't until tomorrow, but things are so busy right now that this might be my only chance to call for a while."

"Oh, of course Alexander," she said warmly. Unfortunately Andromeda Tonks was firm in her resolve to use proper first names always, be they 'Nymphadora' or 'Alexander'. "Ted!" she called. "Floo Nymphadora and tell her that her boyfriend is on the phone!"

Xander smiled to himself. He and Tonks kept their relationship very light since they were so far away and busy battling evil, but he liked that her mother called him Tonks' boyfriend.

"She'll be here in a moment, Alexander."

"Great, thanks Mrs. Tonks. Um, I was wondering, have you two seen Sirius lately?" A few of them were wondering if they should inform Sirius about their plans but Remus' previous owls to check in on him always came back unanswered, so either Sirius was hid very well or was ignoring them. Either way, they decided to avoid contacting their friend, especially because there was a possibility someone else could intercept the letter and use the information against them.

"Oh," Mrs. Tonks sighed. "Well, you know that Nymphadora and I visited him a week ago, yes?"

"Mmm-hmm," Xander replied. Tonks had told him all about Sirius' depression and, in turn, Xander had told Remus, but only Remus. Sirius' sorry state of affairs really didn't need to be known by anyone other than his best friend, after all.

Although sometimes Xander was tempted to tell Willow. He loved his yellow-crayon friend and would always support her, but he hated that she had hurt another friend of his. And while Kennedy was always nice to him, he still didn't think she was a great fit for Willow.

"Well, I took some groceries over today and he's still the same. Luckily, at least he promised to shower if Tonks took him to the Triwizard Tournament tomorrow and pretended that he was her dog."

"Oh wow, Harry's big event is tomorrow?" Xander asked in surprise. Poor kid, he felt bad that the boy seemed to have worst luck than Dawn on a Tuesday.

"Yes, tomorrow evening," Mrs. Tonks replied. There was the sound of several items crashing in the background and Xander heard the woman yelling. "By Merlin, Nymphadora! Break everything in this bloody house, why don't you?" she said with dry humor and Xander swore he could imagine her rolling her eyes.

"Mum!" Tonks screeched. "Do not call me that… ugh, horrid name in front of Xander!"

Xander found himself chuckling. Personally, he didn't think Nymphadora was that bad – especially in comparison to 'LaVelle' – but he would certainly never say that to Tonks.

"Wotcher, Xander!" Tonks said in a bright voice as she took over the phone. "What made you decide to call today?" she asked with a smile in her voice.

Xander grinned as he lounged on top of his bed as he began visualizing her heart-shaped face at the other end of the line. "Just wanted to hear your voice," he said cheesily, trying to be light-hearted when it really was the hard truth of the matter.

"Oh, you sweet-talker you," Tonks teased.

Xander laughed loudly. For some reason, everything seemed better in the world whenever he talked to Tonks. As the next two hours passed, he forgot all about the impending battle as he focused only on her voice and her laugh – and how happy she made him.

* * *

Willow frowned to herself as she began rummaging through her closet for the crystals that she had received for Christmas. She and Luna both thought that the added focus of the crystals would help the activation spell, but she was having a hard time remembering where they were. They, like anything else associated with Sirius, had been tossed to the back of her closet at Kennedy's astute suggestion. Of course, it didn't help that now everything in a closet was a mess!

Fingering her clothes and pulling them closer towards the center so she could see the corner of the closet, Willow went "Hmmm," as she realized her robe was missing. After arriving from Hogwarts, she had quickly shoved it to into her closet, sure that she would never need it again, and had not touched it since. Therefore, it was weird that it was missing. Maybe Dawn had borrowed it? She'd have to ask.

Aha! There, squished between a shoe box and photo albums, was the case full of crystals. With a victorious smile, she grasped the dusty box with her fingers and yanked it ungracefully out, falling on her butt in the process. But she didn't mind. Now that she had the crystals, Willow knew that the spell was finally ready. Then, hopefully, in two days, they could celebrate and hopefully go a month without another crazy aiming for world endage.

Almost giddy with anticipation, Willow opened the crystal case and carefully picked up the first cerulean blue one that she saw. Unexpectedly, it began glowing in her hand, but before Willow could wonder as to the cause, a blur of images rushed through her brain. The mental anguish of memories past ripped a terrifying scream from her throat and she fell backwards onto the carpeted floor.

* * *

Lucius Malfoy, once more dressed in his Kennedy guise, was reluctantly copying the movements of the Second Slayer during a class with the other potentials in the training room. He was utterly tired of this nonsense and couldn't wait until the final battle to reveal himself. Dressing as a woman and copying her mannerisms was much harder than he had originally expected and he yearned for his own body. It had taken him a while to get used to this one – which certainly hadn't helped him succeed in his beginning classes with the potential slayers – and he found it a weak substitute for his own.

Just as he was completing a front kick, the matching pendent to Willow's mood ring glowed hot against his covered chest and he fell over in surprise.

"Kennedy? You alright?" Faith called in a voice that signified her annoyance with the potential who couldn't even complete a front kick correctly – not to mention, she had been making his life a living hell these past two weeks since Sirius left.

"Fine," he grunted. "Just, ah, need to get some water." Without listening to her response, he ran into the kitchen and quickly made his way to Willow's room. Something was wrong. He wasn't sure what, but some good force of magic was attempting to undo all of his hard work.

His eyes widened in surprise as he opened the door to find Willow crying in a curled ball on the floor and a glowing crystal laying next to her. He yanked her door shut and then shook her shoulder urgently.

"Willow? Willow? What's wrong?" he asked in a caring voice.

Willow paused in her crying to gaze up at him – and then she screamed in fear.

"Get away from me! I know what you made me do!"

Lips curling back into a sneer, he silenced her with a spell and then smashed the glowing crystal into a thousand pieces. Knowing there was no time to act, he hit the Dark One with an memory modification charm. He could feel her magic pushing against him in defiance, but he had claimed enough power over her in the few weeks to break through her dismal walls and erase her memory of the last five minutes.

When he was done, Willow had fallen backwards and Lucius was panting as he leaned against the bed. That had been too close – far too close. What on earth would have triggered that reaction? It must have been the crystal, but why? Cautiously, Lucius looked at the lid of the wooden case and grimaced as he read the engraved inscription.  
_  
To my dear Willow,  
May these crystals always protect you against evil and strengthen you against your own darkness._  
"Dammit!" he swore under his breath. He'd gotten rid of that foul blood-traitor and that menace was still threatening to disrupt his plans! He really should have killed that wizard when he had the chance.

Merry Christmas.

Your loving Thief,  
Sirius

"Ke-Kennedy?" Willow's soft, shaky voice crept up to meet his ears.

"Yes, my love?" he whispered as he crouched over her exhausted form.

"What happened? The…the crystal…it began glowing and then…I don't remember…but I feel sick."

He ran a comforting hand over her arm. "I'm not sure, but those crystals may have been cursed."

"But, but Sirius got those for me," she said with wide, surprised eyes.

Lucius shrugged. "Please, like you can trust Sirius," he snorted as he silently activated his pendant, and thus her ring. "Who knows from what kind of shady magic dealer he got those pieces of junk from."

"You're right," she said with a hard expression. "I cannot believe he would be so irresponsible. No," she rolled her eyes. "I could see that."

"I can pick you up some new crystals, my love. Would you like that?"

"Ken, you really are perfect, you know that?" Willow smiled brightly at him. A small twinge of guilt could be felt deep in his gut at twisting this woman's mind so much that she barely knew what was up from what was down. He almost felt… affection for her, even. However, she was needed to ensure his powerful future and, in time, would benefit from his trickery – when she became his bride and sat with him at the First's right side.

Once they were finally united in Dark magic, _no one_ would be able to stop them.

* * *

A/N:

So, the events leading up to the final battle took up a lot more time than previously expected – darn all these characters who are demanding their own special 'moment'! Anyways, sorry that I sorta lied a bit ago about a Sirius-centered chapter…that will happen soon, though!

*Soña Faeries— Soñar= to dream in Spanish,


	86. 24 Hours to GoGo

Hours to Go-Go...

**A/N:**

Thanks to Greywizard for beta-ing this chapter!

Since I'm not using my home computer, I'm not sure who I've thanked for issuing a rec and who I haven't….So just to be safe I wanted to say thank you to SuukiAldrea and to EastOfEden for issuing this story a rec – tis appreciated!

I'm currently on Day 7 of my (almost) month long travels around the US. Been to Chicago, South Florida (Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, Little Havana, South Beach, West Palm Beach), Seattle, Long Beach (OMFG I DRANK AT THE 'REAL' FANGTASIA!), and now in Austin….I may not be able to respond to reviews/update as much as normal, so apologies in advance. (on that note, I have no place to stay in Portland, OR if you happen to live there this weekend...stupid hostels being booked and my friend bailing on me *grumbles*)

Once I get more time, I'll also be posting all my travels on my LiveJournal :)

Enjoy!

(also, don't forget to vote in the COAs!)

Less than twenty-four hours.

That's all they had until the final battle.

Buffy took another stab of her triple chocolate cake and shoved the large portion greedily into her mouth.

"Damn, B," Faith whistled as she waltzed into the kitchen and grabbed a carton of milk from the fridge. "It's only eight a.m. and you're already packing away the chocolate. Nerves got ya?" She settled herself into the kitchen chair next to Buffy and helped herself to some cake as well. Considering that Buffy had the entire cake on her plate and was slowly working her way through it, Faith thought big sis wouldn't mind if she took a few bites.

"You know, I read in Cosmo once that chocolate has endorphins, and endorphins make happiness, so therefore, I consider this perfectly legitimate eating," Buffy defended herself.

"Uh-huh," Faith smirked. "Well, I don't know what the hell endorphins are, but I do know I like to get my happies the old fashioned way."

Buffy snorted… and then took a second, long look at Faith. "Ah!" she gasped as her jaw dropped. "You got happy with someone last night? Who?"

Faith winked as she took another bite of chocolate cake, making sure to lick her lips as salaciously as possible in the process. "I'll give ya a clue. It's like that Van Halen song, _Hot for Teacher_."

Buffy's eyes just bulged out of her skull. "Oh my god, you had sex with Remus!" she nearly screeched.

"What?" Faith asked in surprise as her back straightened. "No! Oh my god, no! I did the horizontal tango with Robin!"

Buffy put her hand over her heart. "Oh, thank god. I mean, that's still weird 'cause he was my boss, but when you said 'teacher,' I thought you meant Remus."

"No," Faith snickered. "No teacher, instead I just found out how that man put the 'pal' in principal – and found out how he put other things in, too," she added crudely.

"Faith!" Buffy said in amused outrage as she rolled her eyes. "You're so bad."

"Yeah, I am." Then she peered at her renewed partner-in-crime. "What 'bout you? You and Spike been doin' any horizontal mambos or, hell, even a freakin' hokey-pokey?"

"We have not been doing any dancing of any kind, thank you very much," Buffy said stiffly as she took another big bite of cake.

"Hey, you birds know where Xander put some of those things we stole? I wanted to practice before all the kiddies were up and at 'em," came Spike's voice as he entered the kitchen. "Ooh, cake," he grinned as he swiped some frosting with his index finger and licked it.

"I think most of it is in the backyard shed that he built," Buffy informed him, not looking at him directly.

"Great. Thanks, Buffy," he commented. Then as his eyes traveled over her face, he smirked.

"What?" she asked in irritation.

"You saving some of this for later?" he chuckled as he took his index finger and wiped off some icing at the corner of her mouth before consuming the tantalizing bit of chocolate. "See you two later, I've got some toys to play with," Spike called over his shoulder as he walked into the backyard.

Faith just snorted and grabbed another forkful of cake as she watched the display of emotions on Buffy's face. "If it'd help with all the sexual tension, I've got some toys up in my bedroom that you can play with, too," she grinned.

Buffy shot her a glare that indicated her lack of amusement and promptly flicked dark frosting onto Faith's surprised features.

"Oh, no, you _didn't_," Faith drawled with a gleam of mischievousness.

"Girlfriend, this means war!"

Connor was sitting on the Summers' roof eating breakfast and drinking tea with Remus, as he silently wondered why the wizard had asked him to have breakfast alone with him today. Shifting uncomfortably in the metallic patio chair, he eyed Remus suspiciously. He had been here for a little over two weeks, and the wizard had seemed to take it upon himself to provide Connor with an 'education' that consisted of standard classroom instruction, like history, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. The latter class he also took with Luna, Dawn, and Ida, since they were all a part of the 'supernatural' world in a way very much unlike the potentials slayers. Ida joined the class at the same time as Connor; Remus had invited her due to her new werewolf nature.

Ida was a nice girl and participated eagerly in class – not the reaction he was expecting at all. If _he_ had been the one bit by Remus he would be angry and bitter. But… she wasn't. She didn't love it by any means, but she accepted it. When the full moon came last week, she had been tired after the change, but still participated in class the next day and acted like it was just another day.

Connor found her reaction odd.

How could someone his age be so accepting of such a horrible event in their life? For so long his only reaction was rage… but, as he began to spend time with the Sunnydale people, he was learning that all of them had experienced some sort of suffering – heck, Buffy had even died! Twice! – but they still went on, sometimes in such a light-hearted way.

It was all very, very peculiar to him.

After making with the pleasantries, Connor was pleased that Remus finally got to the point of their meeting.

"Connor, I know you do not have the best relationship with your father and I was wondering how you felt about him arriving here this morning?"

The teenager supernatural being scowled and stabbed his sausage with more force than necessary before consuming it. "It's fine," he grumbled with his mouth full.

Remus sat back in his chair and gave him a calculating look.

"Oh, alright then," he said lightly, before taking a sip of tea.

"I know what you're doing," Connor glowered at him. "You're using that reverse-psychology thing on me. Dawn and Vi told me about that. It's how adults trick teenagers into telling them things."

Remus was still for a moment before he burst out into laughter. "Well, I am certainly glad that you are socializing with others your age – how nice that they can provide a proper education to you!"

Connor found himself smiling at Remus' reaction – he really wasn't used to adults who laughed and, well, were _happy_. Holtz had been a severe and strict father, and Angel always seemed, at least according to Dawn, more 'King Broody-Pants' than someone as full of life and laughter as Remus and the others here were.

"Yeah, the girls are okay. They aren't as scary as I originally thought, when they were trying to force me to dance with them. In fact, they're kind of cool to spar with. Vi is pretty creative with her maneuvers, and I can't wait until she becomes a slayer – I'd love to spar with her at full strength."

"Indeed?" Remus commented with a secretive smile and a raised brow. "Well that's good, Connor. I'm pleased to see you getting along with the others. I take it you're glad that you came?"

Connor shrugged; he wasn't really used to talking about his feelings. "Yeah," he admitted. "I feel a lot better about… things… now that I'm away from L.A."

"Good," Remus smiled. "I'm pleased to hear that. Mind you, I'm very glad that you came, as well."

"You are?" Connor asked in surprise.

"Of course!" Remus affirmed. "You've proven quite the asset in assisting Buffy and Faith with their training curriculum, not to mention it is fantastic to have another male in this house," he joked.

Wow. Remus thought he was… an asset? Thanks to growing up in Quor-Toth he knew a _lot_ about fighting, but he didn't really think he had been that helpful in helping the two slayers lead the classes.

A small smile worked its way onto Connor's face. "Thanks, Remus."

Their breakfast went on a while longer until a familiar smell traveled up Connor's nostrils: _Angel._

Like a bloodhound on the hunt, Connor snapped to attention and peered over the edge of the modified roof. Exiting a gleaming large vehicle that looked like it could fit ten men, were Angel, Wesley, Gunn, Fred, and Lorne. Angel must have sensed his presence because the vampire glanced up at the roof and smiled in greeting.

Connor only scowled in return and slunk back to the patio table. Angel may be here because the slayers needed him, but it was still too soon for him to be what Angel wanted – a son.

But… maybe he would try to copy the positive attitude of Ida and all the Scoobies… and try to get over it.

Not too long after he began to inspect the shed, Spike realized that he would actually need the help of the One-Eyed Wonder to help him figure out some of the controls. Unfortunately for them, there hadn't been /sodding instruction manuals laying around when they swiped the items, and they looked a bit harder to operate than he had originally anticipated.

No matter. He'd just go wake up the carpenter and then he'd get to practice for tomorrow's fight.

He began strolling back to the kitchen when he heard Buffy and Faith shrieking and laughing. Intrigued, he sped up and opened the door with a smirk on his face.

Well, imagine that – the two slayers were having a little food fight. Spike _never_ would have thought these two would ever become friends, but Buffy had tried to explain to him what had happened when they each touched the Scythe. He didn't quite get the slayer hocus pocus, but he was happy for her. The last thing Buffy needed was another enemy and what she deserved was a friend.

Of course, with Faith around to share her supernatural burdens with her, his pet didn't quite need him as much… but surprisingly, Spike was alright with that. He loved Buffy, more than he had loved anything, and she deserved to be happy. After all, he doubted that she would ever be happy with him. Not after everything he had done.

Yet, a vampire can still dream.

"Faith!" Buffy shouted as she used her supernatural reflexes to duck a ball of mashed up cake.

"What's s'matter, B? You afraid of getting dirty" Faith jeered good-naturedly. Then Faith spotted Spike and grinned.

"Never mind. I forgot how you like to dirty it up once in a while!" she laughed before taking a direct hit in the face with goopy frosting.

"Faith!" Buffy said in a scandalized tone as she glanced at Spike with slightly tinted cheeks. Spike, for his part, just smiled. For moments like this alone, he was thrilled to have Faith here. She always made a point of saying something suggestive about them on a daily basis, and Spike loved that Buffy could still blush when it came to him – maybe he did have a chance, after all.

"Nice look, slayers," he commented as he leaned nonchalantly against the door. And it _was_, indeed, a good look for Buffy. Her hair was tousled, flecks of chocolate icing covered part of her lips, her cheek, and even part of her hair – god damn, he just wanted to lick her clean of it.

"Don't you give us that smug look, Spike," Buffy scowled.

"Ya know, it really wouldn't be fair if we didn't let vamp boy here play in our rainbow games," Faith cackled as she exchanged looks with Buffy.

Simultaneously, the two tossed handfuls of cake right at his face. He managed to avoid one but, in the process, got the other handful all over his lower face. Of course, it was the one that Buffy tossed. He slowly rose his head to fix his unblinking eyes on her.

"Slayer," he hissed menacingly, mocking their ways of old.

Buffy faked a yawn. "Puh-lease. That wasn't scary then, and it's even less scary now that you look like a one-year old at his birthday party.

Spike chuckled under his breath, growled playfully, and leapt forward to pick up a remaining piece of cake before he covered the side of Buffy's face with it. Her mouth widened into a surprised and outraged 'O' that made him snicker like a mischievous child.

"Who needs to be scary when I got you lookin' like some frosting monster?" Spike joked with raised brows as he leaned over Buffy.

"Oh you… you… _you!_" she hissed with balled up fists.

"Got a stutter there, luv?" he smirked.

She smiled in anticipation. "You should know better than to mess with me, Spike."

In one sudden movement, Buffy swept his legs out from under him and was straddling him with the rest of the cake tipped precariously over his head. Then, as if having a second thought, she tipped it over his – amazingly – still white shirt.

"Ah pet," he said in an alarmed voice. "Don't be getting' any of that on m'shirt, now. This is my last shirt before doing laundry, and I am definitely not going to be doing laundry on the eve of an apocalypse."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah? What would you rather be doing?"

Spike felt a tightening in his groin at her words. With a grunt, he knocked the cake out of her hand and reversed their positions.

"You really want me to answer that, pet?" he asked in a gruff voice.

Buffy's eyes darkened slightly at his words and he felt a sense of victory swell within him. She did feel the same, even if she didn't acknowledge it. That was fine – he could be patient. After all, he'd wait until the ends of the earth for this one.

Unfortunately, that feeling was short-lived because, in the next moment, Spike heard a roar of anger and felt something large tackling him. They slid into the kitchen island with a crack and Spike automatically responded by thrusting his fist into his attacker's face.

"What the bloody hell?" he yelled.

Vi, Rona, and a hoard of other potentials looked at Xander in alarm from their sparring positions in the upstairs training room. Below, they could hear the sounds of fighting and each of them tensed up in anticipation of possible trouble.

Xander, who was responsible for overseeing the early morning training for the potentials, held up a hand for silence as his magical eye swiveled to focus on the scene below. He roared with laughter and silently thanked Anya yet again for his wonderful gift – no way would he have wanted to miss the scene below!

"Xander?" Rona tentatively began.

"Don't worry about it, girls. It's just the Angel welcome committee. See," he smirked as his normal eye looked at them, "we've got a special way of greeting people here in Sunnydale."

"ANGEL! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? GET OFF HIM!"

Buffy shouted in anger as she watched Angel and Spike tussle on her kitchen floor. With gritted teeth, she grabbed Angel's arm before he could punch Spike and flipped him into the kitchen sink. When Spike tried to follow, she grabbed him and tossed him into the opposite wall.

Faith was smirking at the events from her safe spot next to the backyard door, while Wesley and three people that she assumed – based off Willow's stories – were Gunn, Fred, and Lorne were standing in the doorway, watching. Wesley didn't seem surprised, Gunn was amused, and both Lorne and Fred seemed worried.

"Buffy," Angel greeted her as he tried his best to gracefully get out of the sink – and she was pleased to see that he, at least, at the decency to seem embarrassed.

"Faith," he nodded.

"Spike," he growled and his eyes flashed yellow.

"Wanker," Spike greeted with a calculating smile.

Buffy rolled her eyes at the two of them. "Ok, seriously, Angel, what the hell were you thinking? What makes you think that, once again, you can barge into town and attack my boyfriend?"

Oops.

As soon as the words escaped her lips, Buffy felt her blood pressure spike and the air in her lungs escaped in a rush.

Oh god. She had _not_ meant to say that. No, not that at all. After all, Spike wasn't her boyfriend… well, she cared for him… a lot… and they spent a lot of time together… but they hadn't kissed or done *anything* since he got his soul back…

Meanwhile, Angel was looking at her like she just kicked his puppy – which was ironic, since his evil counterpart was known for puppy torture, Spike looked both shocked and ecstatic, Faith looked smug, Wesley's jaw had dropped so far that you could drive a semi through it, Fred and Gunn seemed confused, and Lorne just looked like he was thrilled to be caught up in a real-life soap opera.

"YOUR BOYFRIEND?" Angel finally yelled.

"Uh, I mean, well, it's – it's complicated," she stuttered in a nervous voice, while she effectively evaded Spike's eyes.

"But he's evil!" Angel struggled to argue.

"Not anymore," Buffy snapped, annoyed that Angel of all people would try that excuse.

"Yeah, I've got a soul," Spike said smugly. "One that I decided to fight for myself, unlike your poofter bum, who just got lucky enough to get cursed with one."

Angel's eyes narrowed and he growled low in his throat.

"God, Angel! Did you come here to help us defeat the First Evil or did you come just to play the jealous ex-boyfriend?" Buffy retorted in angry exasperation as she threw up her arms in annoyance.

That seemed to calm the irate vampire considerably and he took several deep breaths. "I'm sorry… this just took me by surprise," he said stiffly as he stared at her with mixed horror and embarrassment.

Buffy bit her lip and would have given anything to just pretend that the last five minutes had never happened.

"It's okay," she said in a quiet voice. "Um, Faith'll show you your rooms and we'll go over strategy later, okay?"

"Yeah, sure," Angel replied brusquely as he quickly exited the room.

As Faith passed her, following Angel, the slayer gave Buffy an affectionate smile and squeezed her shoulder. "'Bout time," she remarked casually.

But Buffy didn't answer, and soon it was just Spike and her left alone in the room – like _that_ wasn't awkward or anything.

"Well, guess we should get this cleaned up," Buffy said half-heartedly as she gazed at the mess they had made.

Spike just gave her a sardonic smile. "Pet, you really don't expect you can say something like that and not expect me to saying nothin'?"

Buffy scowled at him and grabbed a towel to wipe of her chocolate-y face. Spike snatched her wrists with his hands and pulled him close to her. She swallowed heavily as she looked into eyes that were begging for answers, unsure if she could say what he wanted to hear.

"Spike," she whispered as she turned her head away from him.

"You called me your boyfriend, Buffy. What did you mean by that?" he asked seriously, in a voice that reminded Buffy of how many more years he had lived than her.

"It meant…" she shrugged. "I don't know, it just came out."

Spike gently wiped away some of the chocolate off her lips with his thumb and Buffy found a traitorous shiver run through her. "It had to mean something."

Buffy exhaled deeply. "Spike, you're one of the most important people in the world to me. I just… I don't know if there's more than that or not." Even if a little part of her screamed _'Yes! There is more to it than that!'_

He was silent for a moment before he replied, "I won't ever ask anything of you, Buffy – I know I don't deserve that expectation. But just know that I love you. I love you more than life itself."

And with that, he released her wrists and began walking out of the kitchen.

And Buffy, swirling with conflicting emotions, let him.

With only eighteen hours left until their sunrise battle, the Leadership Team and the Angel Investigations Team met for lunch at twelve-thirty that day. The meeting began casually with a slew of introductions as everyone tried to get to know each other over sandwiches.

*~*~*~*

"So," Giles began stiffly after he shook Wesley's hand. "How are things treating you down in Los Angeles?"

Giles had despised the sniveling coward while Wesley served as Buffy and Faith's watcher four years ago, and he wondered if the man had changed very much. His personal style, at least, seemed to indicate that some sort of change had taken place.

"Well, we've been quite busy with a recent apocalypse, of course," he began self-importantly.

The corner of Giles' mouth quirked up – yes, it would appear that some things never do change.

*~*~*~*

"Connor," Angel said solemnly as he nodded at his estranged son. "How have you been doing here in Sunnydale?"

It was ridiculous that he felt nervous talking to his own son, but Angel knew that Connor still harbored resentment towards him and the circumstances surrounding his upbringing. However, he had talked to Remus briefly before lunch and was happy that at least Connor had settled into life here pretty well.

"It's cool," Connor shrugged carelessly.

Angel fought back a smile. Since when did Connor use slang? Of course, trust Sunnydale to instantly corrupt his vocabulary. "That's good, son. I'm glad to hear that. How have you been keeping yourself busy?"

Connor took a moment to swallow a bite of his sandwiching before shrugging again.

"Classes with Remus and sparring with the slayers and potentials. Been learning a lot… like how you dated a girl a fraction of your age, and that I'm Spike's uncle, essentially," he said with a pointed look and the barest hint of amusement.

Taken aback, Angel nearly spit out his mug full of blood.

"Wha-what?" he gasped. He should have known better than to expect the Scoobies to keep quiet on his personal life to his own son.

Then Connor smirked - _smirked!_ - at him and said, "Dad, no offense, but our family is really screwed up."

Caught off guard, once again, by Connor's remark, Angel found himself laughing. "I cannot dispute that claim."

Out of the corner of his eye he saw a potential with ebony skin – Rona? – push a taller red-haired slayer into Connor with a snort of laughter. The girl squeaked in surprise and grabbed Connor's shoulders to keep from falling. His son's quick reflexes instantly seized the girl and set her on her feet.

"Oh, uh, sorry about that Connor," she apologized with flushed cheeks. "Not _all_ of the potentials," here she shot Rona a dirty look, "are as coordinated as you'd expect."

"Oh, it's okay," Connor acknowledged with a small shrug.

The girl just smiled at him. Then, when she realized that her hands were still on his shoulders, she blushed bright scarlet again and quickly released the teenager.

Angel marveled at the sight – so, maybe his son really was making friends here. Or, having young girls crush on him, at least. "So who's your friend, Connor?"

"Oh, um, she's not my friend," Connor quickly said.

She looked crestfallen at the remark but Dawn, who had been watching from the sidelines, quickly stepped in with Rona in tow.

"Connor! Stop being such a socially awkward doofus," she rolled her eyes as she hip-checked him. "Of course, Vi is your friend, just like Rona and I are your friends."

"Oh!" Connor looked surprised at her strong statement and looked back and forth at the three girls.

"Really? It's just, um… I've never," he paused and lowered his voice. "I've never had friends before."

The redhead looked considerably relieved that the remark wasn't meant to be anything negative towards her and she nodded. "Well, we hang out and have fun, don't we?" she smiled brightly. "That means we're friends."

A smile worked its way onto Connor's face. "Oh, okay. Um, dad, this is Vi and Rona. They're both potential slayers."

"Hi!" Vi said eagerly as she shook his hand. "It's so nice to meet you, sir!"

Angel balked at her words. "Sir?" he practically squeaked out.

*~*~*~*

"Well, well. You must be the infamous Luna Lovegood, Guardian Extraordinaire, that I've heard about," the tall green-skinned demon said in a silky voice as he gave her a beaming smile.

"It is a pleasure to meet you," Luna nodded her head in greeting, a part of her brain wondering what sort of creature he was and if he would be wiling to talk to her about her heritage. Even as she submerged herself deeper and deeper into the supernatural world, the Ravenclaw inside of her was eager to document everything and everyone.

The demon burst into laughter. "You are frakkin' adorable, kid. I'm Lorne."

"Lorne?" she said in puzzlement. "That's a rather unusual name for a demon." Then, once she realized what she had said, Luna clapped a hand over her mouth. "Oh, forgive me! I really shouldn't make judgments about names," she apologized.

Lorne grinned and affectionately rubbed the top of her head. "No problem-o, kiddo. My given name is Krevlornswath of the Deathwok Clan, but I prefer Lorne."

Deathwok Clan? Interesting. "Lorne is a very nice name," she smiled.

"So how did you know that I was a—" Luna swallowed heavily as she remembered that with the death of her grandmother she was no longer 'a' Guardian, she was 'the' Guardian. "That I was the Guardian?" she finished.

"Well, Remus explained it to me earlier, but I would have recognized that there was some thing special about you, regardless of being told or not," he explained as he settled into a chair and took a sip out of a pink beverage with an umbrella in it.

"How?" Luna asked curiously as she settled in the chair next to him and wrapped her arms around her legs.

"I'm an anagogic demon, which means I can read people's auras and *you*, missy, got yourself a shiny one."

Luna's eyes widened at the description of his power. "That's amazing! Can you read minds as well?" she asked, thinking vaguely of the Menslengua demons that she had heard about from her father.

Lorne grinned. "When people sing, I can read both their auras and their futures – and sometimes, depending on the person, I can read their thoughts and emotions when they sing, too. Otherwise, if they're not singing, I can read the basics of someone's aura."

"If I sing, will you read my aura and future?" Luna asked brightly. Wait until she wrote father about this!

Chuckling, Lorne shook his head. "Maybe some other time, kiddo. Reading the future before a hellfire battle is usually the best way to knock me out with grief. Last time I read someone's future was a month ago. Speaking of which, where is that sly old dog?" he grinned as he looked around the room.

Luna frowned. "Sly old…Oh! You mean Sirius!"

"Yeah, where's he at? I see Willow isn't having lunch with us – lemme guess, those crazy love birds are off together?" he smiled.

"Oh," Luna said sadly. "No, Willow's feeling sick and she needs to rest up before the big spell, so she's upstairs and Kennedy's taking care of her. Sirius, he, um, he left."

"Sirius left?" Lorne exclaimed, leading several people to look at him in alarm. He lowered his voice and continued speaking to Luna. "When? I told that idiot not to leave!"

"Um, about two weeks ago," Luna answered nervously. "Why, did you see his future?"

"I saw something, but it was hard to make out. All I could see was Sirius leaving Willow at a time of her greatest need, even though it was a lie that split them apart. But other than that, I could see nothing clear," Lorne mused.

"Oh," Luna said with wide eyes. That didn't sound good at all.

"How is our favorite witch doing?" Lorne asked in concern.

"Well, she's okay I suppose. She and Sirius broke up two weeks ago and she's been dating Kennedy ever since."

"A Kennedy? What'd he do, take her out on a fancy expensive date and sweep her off her feet, or something?"

Luna giggled. "No, Kennedy is a girl. She's another potential slayer and a witch."

"Huh," Lorne said softly. "Well, I hope the Willster is alright…"

*~*~*~*

"Gunn, this is Robin Wood," Remus introduced the two men.

Gunn smirked at Robin, glanced around the room, and then smirked some more.

"Man, you do realize there's only enough space for _one_ Token Black Dude here, yeah?" he grinned.

Robin chuckled. "Oh yeah? So, how do we settle this, then?"

Gunn pondered it for a second. "Michael Jackson dance-off?" he joked.

*~*~*~*

After about twenty minutes of conversation, Buffy began the meeting with a clap of her hands. As everyone settled into their seats, she whispered to both Faith and Giles, who sat on each side of her. Seeming satisfied with their responses, she re-capped their plans for tomorrow for the benefit of the Angel Investigations crew, and then listened to reports from Remus on potions and Xander on their grand larceny.

When everyone was finished, Angel spoke up.

"So where do we come in?" His eyes were guarded and it was clear that he was *not* okay with the idea of Buffy being with someone else, especially Spike. Buffy made a mental note to talk to him at some point later that night.

"Angel, we thought you would be in the caverns with us fighting the Turok-Han," Buffy started to say before she was interrupted.

"Yeah, I'll be there too… But Buffy said I had to get your permission," Connor said as he looked his father straight in the eyes.

"Connor, it's going to be dangerous," Angel reflexively protested.

"So? That's been my whole life. At least this time, I'll be fighting for a bigger purpose. And," he glanced at the Vi, Dawn, and Rona, "I'll be fighting for my friends."

Vi got a sickeningly sappy smile on her face.

Angel sighed and glanced at the rest of the AI Gang. "Connor, if it means that much to you, then of course, you can fight with us. I'm glad you found something worth fighting for."

"Really?" Connor replied as his eyebrows shot up his forehead.

Angel grinned. "What? Did I take all the fun out of vampire hunting, by giving you permission to do it?"

The rest of the room's inhabitants laughed and Connor scowled. "No." Then, when his father looked away, he allowed a small smile to grace his face.

"What about the rest of us?" Gunn asked.

"That's really up to you guys. I know that you can't fight against the Turok-Han, but Xander could use a couple of you for his mission and we can always use people patrolling the first floor hallways to make sure no uber-vamps escape," Buffy explained.

"Dude, count me in with you," Gunn nodded at Xander. "I'm all about setting up the streamers for the house warming party."

"Uh," Lorne pursed his lips. "Don't think I'll be much help, Blondie, unless you want a rockin' soundtrack for your slaughter. I suppose I could drive the party bus there?"

"I think that sounds good," Faith grinned. "And when you say party bus, I really hope you mean *party* bus. I'm thinkin' we relax with a gallon or two of rum after we annihilate those bastards."

"That sounds good to me," Rona grinned as she shared a look with Vi.

"You're underage," Giles reminded her sternly.

"You mean the poor girl can die for her world, but not drink in it?" Faith asked with a snort. "Don't worry, chicas, in Mexico you can drink, more or less, legally," she winked at the teenagers.

"But, Faith, we won't be in Mexico," Buffy said in confusion.

"Aha! But in the early 1800s, this part of Cali _was_ in Mexico. So, like, we just make our drinking adventure all historical-like," her sister slayer grinned.

Giles just sighed and cleaned his glasses.

"I could assist Remus and Anya with handling the potions. Their magic is far different from mine, but I might prove useful."

"Thank you, Wesley," Remus smiled at the former watcher.

"Er, I could help Mr. Giles and Dawn guard the first floor," Fred offered in an unsure tone.

"We look forward to having you with us," Giles said with a kind smile.

Buffy went to speak again, but Angel cut her off. "Actually, before we make any more plans, there's something you need to know. I think it will be useful, but if you're suspicious, I'll only use them if you give me the go-ahead."

Just hearing the word 'suspicious' made Buffy feel suspicious. "What is it?" she asked cautiously.

Angel glanced at his counterparts. "Well, we've begun working for a new organization."

"One that has untold resources," added Wesley.

"Even if they are crazy-evil," mentioned Gunn.

"But it's alright, because once we get back from this, Lorne is going to make all the employees sing and then we're going to fire the people that are evil!" Fred said brightly and the demon in question nodded in agreement.

"What with the 'huh!', now?" Buffy in bafflement as she glanced at Faith for reassurance. The brunette slayer just shrugged as if to say 'fuck if I know' and Buffy refocused her attention on Angel.

"We've begun working with Wolfram and Hart," Angel stated, almost apprehensively.

"What?" Faith was the first one to screech, followed Connor, Buffy, and even Giles, who had heard of the infamous law firm.

"You see—"

But Faith cut Angel off.

"Um, hold up," she said as a finger punctured the air. "Do not tell me I risked my life to stop Angelus and now he's got back hold of you and you're running an evil law firm."

"Whoa!" Xander exclaimed as he scooted his chair backwards, clearly upset about sitting across from Angel. "You're evil again?"

"Wait, _he_ turns evil too? Jeez!" Rona groaned. "What's wrong with you people?"

"Hold on! I'm not evil!" Angel shouted above everyone's comments.

"Yeah, he's not," Buffy added. "When he was evil, he always did this creepy undress-you-with-my-eyes look and he's creepy-eyed free today."

"You know whether he's evil or not based on the creepiness of his eyes?" Giles asked in a wry tone.

"Yeah," Buffy answered like it was the dumbest question in the world.

"So, you're _not_ evil," Xander surmised.

"No, I'm not," Angel responded in an irritated voice. "Trust us, none of us were sure about joining Wolfram and Hart, but when they offered us the positions of leadership – CEO and department heads – we took it because, one, we thought we could use their resources to fight evil from the inside and, two, they promised that they would figure out a cure for Cordelia."

"Cordy's still not awake?" Connor asked in a small voice.

"No, she's still in the coma," Angel gently informed her son. "It's a mystical coma, so the hospitals can't fix it, and I think Wolfram and Hart may be the only ones able to help her."

"Hold on a second," Xander said hotly, as he turned blazing eyes upon Angel. "Cordelia is in a freaking coma and you never told us? A mystical coma? Who did it to her? I'll kill whatever sort of demon it was!" he vowed.

Connor, sitting next to Xander, noticeably shrank away from the angry man.

"It's all happened in just the last month or so. As for what did it to her, it was a higher being named Jasmine and—"

"—And I already killed her," Connor said with downcast eyes. "Cordelia has been avenged."

There was a moment of silence as everyone took in that statement, and the thought of the bubbly woman they knew laying lifeless in a coma.

"So you think this evil law firm can help Cordelia?" Giles broke the silence by bringing everyone back to the main topic.

"Yes," Angel stated resolutely.

"Alright. Well, where do these lawyer dudes come in handy?" Buffy asked. "After all, we're trying to vanquish the First Evil, not sue it."

"We've got resources," Wesley answered her. "Considerable resources that could be useful tomorrow."

Buffy and Faith exchanged looks.

"Go on," Buffy prompted.

As Wesley went on to explain their resources, Buffy felt a spark of hope flare up within her.

Some people might call their new plan overkill. But for Buffy, it was just enough kill.

And she couldn't wait.

**A/N:**

Soooo…how did you enjoy this chapter? It's one of my favorites :D

**Dearest Readers, I have a special favor to ask…**Once this story is finished (which will, sadly, be rather soon) I'll be working on some unfinished works and 3 original stories. Since you all have read almost 300,000 words by me (or more if you've read other stories), you have seen a lot of my writing style. Not to mention, my style has changed and hopefully improved during the course of this story, so I'd be interested to know how you think my writing has progressed.

So here's my favor:

I _really_ want to continue to improve my writing style and would love some overall comments on my writing. Some day I would like to publish something and I need good feedback on how to improve and what to maintain.

I am asking you to respond to anywhere from 1 to all of the questions below and either leave it in a review or e-mail me at (lol, don't laugh! I've had it forever and I love LOTR!). You can respond to this at anytime, although preferably before this story is over and I start on a new one :)

Don't be afraid to be honest, even if it may be hard to read for me (course, don't just be mean for the fun of it either!). But I sincerely do want your opinion.

I understand if you don't have the time, but would appreciate it if you could. For people who respond to every question, I would be more than happy to return the favor by beta-ing a chapter or giving you a review on something that you've been working on and have questions about, etc – just ask!

**1. What do you like the most about my writing/what do I do well? **  
-Most positive comments I get say that I do good with dialogue and characterizations. -I'm curious what you also think about my story pacing, plot (this story has been kinda twisting and I wonder if those moments were written well/predictable/etc).  
-How do I write humor? Romance? Bonding moments? Etc?

**2. What could I improve on? **  
-I feel like I'm not as focused on details and descriptions (choosing a bigger focus on dialogue instead) and I'm unsure if that is okay or bad. I'm definitely no Anne Rice who is description-heavy but I feel like I should try for a better middle ground. Then again, part of the thing about fanfiction writing is it allows for (in a sense) lazier writing because Readers already know what people look like and how they talk…So I may have inadvertently skimped on that.  
-But what else could I do better?

**3. What made you pick up this story and keep reading it for as long as you have? **  
-The Willow/Sirius story? The twisting plot? The additional spotlights on supporting characters? The romance? The humor? What worked for you?

**4. Any other comments? **

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR READING AND REVIEWING! Y'all (as they say here in TX!) are great! :D


	87. Trelawney Comes Through Again!

**Trelawney Comes Through Again!**

DISCLAIMER: Y'all already know I don't own Harry Potter. However, I would like to especially mention that I am borrowing a scene from Book#4, Chapter 33: The Death Eaters (p646, paperback). Thank you to JK Rowling for writing this wonderful series that I love to play with!

A special thank you to everyone who voted in the COAs – I _really_ appreciate it, you have no idea. It's humbling to know that people like my stories enough to vote for them, so thank you :) I am very excited to still be in the running for Best New Author, Best Anita Blake Crossover, Best Femslash Pairing, and Best Cartoons Crossover (lol I really can't believe people enjoy my South Park crack fic! Heehee).

Also, here is the long-await Sirius chapter :)

Thanks to Greywizard for being my beta!

Major thanks to everyone that's reviewed - I've been gone for a month so I apologize for not responding yet but I'll get my act together eventually ;)

* * *

The tight cords that bound Harry Potter to the marble headstone constricted around him with every labored breath as he watched the newly arisen Lord Voldemort speak to his arriving Death Eaters. Sharp pain flared along the crook of his right arm where Wormtail had forcibly stolen blood for the resurrection spell and his head swam with pain and panic at the situation. The image of Cedric's body, struck by a bright green jet of light, incessantly kept lurking to the front of his thoughts – Cedric was dead, dead because Harry thought they should take the trophy together, dead because Voldemort wanted Harry's blood…

Harry squeezed his eyes shut, as if he could squeeze the memory out of his mind like making bitter lemonade. He tried to think of what Sirius would do in this type of situation – Sirius was always brave, whether it was fighting Death Eaters in the Wizarding War or helping Buffy fight the First on the Hellmouth.

So, Harry Potter thought of bravery then, and all those who he knew – Sirius, Willow, Buffy, Dawn, and others – who dealt with evil on a daily basis. They did it, and so could he.

With that thought, Harry opened his eyes and prepared to wait for a moment to escape.

Voldemort was speaking to the Death Eaters now, after showing his 'merciful' side by granting Wormtail – _that disgusting, traitorous rat!_ - a new hand. He traveled the circle of servants and spoke to some – Macnair, Goyle, Crabbe, and Nott, while bypassing others. After Nott, he almost passed an empty spot in the circle before completing a double take at the odd item lying on the ground.

With his wand, he raised the object until it was at eye level and let out a high-pitched, chilling cackle while the Death Eaters shuffled uncomfortably. The slowly revolving object glinted in the faint light of the moon and looked to be a trophy of some kind.

"Oh, Catherine Madison," Lord Voldemort laughed mirthlessly. "It appears you still have a tendency to let your passion override common sense while spell casting.

_Madison?_ Harry remembered reading about Amy Madison's betrayal of Sirius in Dawn's letters – Sirius, of course, didn't want to go into detail with Harry – and wondered if Catherine was related to Amy. As he watched the other members of the circle, he was also curious about Wormtail's reaction – the animagus appeared to be an odd mixture of surprise and fear.

The trophy was dropped unceremoniously and, finally, Voldemort reached the largest gap and observed it silently; his bright red eyes cut through the graveyard darkness like flames in the pits of hell. When he spoke, his voice clipped through the air like sharp icicles falling swiftly off a mountain ledge.

"And here we have seven missing Death Eaters…,three dead in my service. One, too cowardly to return… He will pay. One, who I believe thinks he has left me forever… he will be killed, of course. One who is supposed to be dead, yet I can feel his presence through the Mark… Lucius will pay dearly for his new allegiance…And one who remains my most faithful servant, and who has already reentered my service."

Quickly, Voldemort's attention turned towards Harry… And he silently prayed that there would be a way out of this.

* * *

Sirius paced the confines of an upstairs room at the Hog's Head Inn. He was overcome with emotion at the evening's revelations. Voldemort was back… Wormtail had further betrayed them by helping… Harry, poor Harry, had been tortured under Voldemort's own wand… and James and Lily, the two people whose loss was a daily dull ache for him, had returned for a moment – even if it was just an echo of themselves… and now, the Order of the Phoenix was being recalled.

Without thinking, his fist smashed into the wooden paneling as he let out a frustrated grunt. The impact made the wood splinter and he cursed silently as he felt sharp pricks along his skin.

He hated not being able to do anything to help Harry. His station in the wizarding world needed to be fixed, although that was unlikely, due to Fudge's vehemence that Voldemort was not back. Of course, Fudge was more unpopular lately, thanks to a well-publicized row with the American Secretary, but Wizarding Britain was an insular group and Sirius doubted much would come from that – they thought they were better than the Americans, anyways.

And, of course, thinking about Wizarding America made his mind immediately go towards thinking about the American witch that plagued his thoughts, accompanied by a sense of regret, wistfulness, and betrayal. He wondered what she was doing right now… Was she embroiled in another battle against the First? Or was she doing something with Kennedy?

He had to fight back a growl at the thought. Bloody Kennedy. But it still made him sad that Willow had chosen her over him. Sure, Sirius wasn't perfect, but they had had something real… or at least, he thought they did. To be perfectly honest, when he replayed his last days in Sunnydale, he still couldn't figure out how or where things had gone sour so quickly. The only thing he could think was that Willow had been harboring her feelings for Kennedy for a while – after all, it wasn't like he had never done that in previous relationships – and used their argument as an excuse to leave him.

"Sirius?" Dumbledore called as the door creaked open. "They're rea—" He frowned as he eyed the hole in the wall and raised an eyebrow. "I won't bother asking if you're upset, that goes without saying, but if you are ready I have prepared the other Order members for you and have informed them of your innocence."

Sirius jerked his head in a silent nod and followed Dumbledore out. Earlier tonight, Molly Weasley had found out he was alive and – surprise! – innocent. It had gone as well as could be expected, and a part of Sirius was almost happy that Voldemort had finally come out of hiding. If Voldemort was out, then soon Wormtail would be as well – and everyone would know he was innocent. Considering the current circumstances – a crazy, powerful wizard back from the dead and his godson in deadly peril – it was a slim silver lining, but a silver lining, nonetheless.

Dumbledore opened the door to the secretive room at the Inn and Sirius managed a weak smile to greet the curious faces. He saw the members he had sent notices to on Dumbledore's behalf – Arabella Figg and Mundungus Fletcher – as well as some other old faces. Mad-Eye was here, most likely enthused about a chance to deliver some vengeance to Voldemort for having him stuck in a trunk for months. From Hogwarts, there was Hagrid and Professor McGonagall, the former looking rather uncomfortable in the low-ceiling room. Emmeline Vance, Sturgis Podmore, Elphias Doge, and Dedalus Diggle, were all seated around the large rectangular table as well, and Sirius was amused to see Diggle wearing an almost eye-burning violet top hat. And, of course, there was also Molly and Arthur Weasley.

The person who he was most glad to see was Tonks, whom he had invited after Dumbledore told him about the meeting. He and his cousin had talked often since January about the growing threat of Voldemort, and she had urged him to let her know if there was ever a way she could help. He was extremely glad to see her smiling, friendly face.

"Always knew yeh weren't a mad murderer, mate," Dung gave him a yellowed-teeth smile.

"Oh, oh!" Dedalus squealed and his top hat nearly fell off. "So wonderful to know the truth. It's good to see you, Sirius."

Sirius gave his first real smile of the night. Dedalus had been in school with them and while the Hufflepuff never had much common sense, the guy had always been a good one to have around. "It's good to see you too, Ded. Good to see you all, actually," he added significantly.

Dumbledore gestured for Sirius to take a seat at the table and began regaling the other members with the previous events of the night. Most of them were not surprised that Voldemort had returned, but nearly all of them were frightened to an extent. Many of them had barely survived the first time Voldemort rose to power and they all knew that they may not be so lucky this time.

The rest of the meeting consisted of Dumbledore's first plans for the Order: to recruit more wizards and witches into the Order, and to get more people to believe that Voldemort had returned before Fudge's lies swayed anyone. Finally, Dumbledore looked into the eyes of all thirteen participants and thanked them for coming and their willingness to do what was right.

As the members began filtering out Sirius found himself bombarded by words of sympathy, questions as to how he had escaped, and congratulations on his return. While he had always been a person who relished being the center of attention, his mind was overwhelmed with worry for Harry. Luckily, Tonks dragged him away and Sirius was relieved to see people deciding to leave.

"Thanks, Tonks," he smiled weakly as he leaned his tired body against the wall.

"'Course, cousin. You were looking a bit peaky surrounded by everyone," she commented as her eyes glowed with concern.

"Yeah," he snorted. "Dung was especially curious as to how I escaped."

"Ya alright, then?" she eyed him with keen eyes.

He shrugged. "My godson almost died tonight," was all he could say.

"Did you get to see him?"

"Yeah," he shrugged. "Not for long though."

"Well, let's go visit him again!" she said eagerly, clearly looking for a balm to his hidden wounds. "Oh, Professor Dumbledore? Can we go back with you to the castle?" she asked him as he was just about to leave with McGonagall and Hagrid.

Dumbledore nodded absently, clearly contemplating a sea of ideas in his head. "Yes, that will be fine. Tonks, if anyone asks, you can just say you're here on Auror business."

"Great!" she grinned and Sirius found her excitement to be infectious. He turned back into his animagus form and followed the four of them through the castle grounds. Once they arrived in the hospital wing on the third floor, Sirius curled up in his dog form on Harry's bed while Tonks took to the chair at his side. There, Sirius watched his godson – so painfully the likeness of his father – and eventually fell asleep.

He awoke later as the sun began to shine cheerfully through the windows and he felt a foot kick him in the ribs. Jumping up in surprise, he gave the yawning boy a doggy smile; Sirius was happy to see him awake.

"Oh? That you, Sir—Padfoot? Sorry 'bout that," he yawned as Sirius gave a quiet bark of greeting.

"Here ya go, Harry," Tonks handed him his glasses. "You hungry or anything?"

"Tonks?" Harry said in confusion. "What are you doing here? And what's Padfoot doing here?"

She grinned and jerked a thumb in Sirius' direction. "Had to make sure this mutt didn't get in trouble when he wanted to come see you."

"Thanks, Padfoot," Harry smiled sincerely before a darker look crossed his face. "It wasn't a dream, was it?" he asked as he inspected the long, partially healed cut on his right arm which was all that remained of the previous night's misadventure.

Sirius lowered his head on the blankets covering Harry's feet and Tonk's face pinched with emotion. "'Fraid not, Harry," she said quietly.

Then silence overtook them for a long time until Madam Pomfrey bustled in to check on Harry.

"Oh, what is this beast doing here again?" she muttered as she glared at Sirius. "I swear, if Dumbledore hadn't told me to keep him here, I would certainly have this animal kicked out."

Sirius let out several barks, just to annoy her and try to prod a weak smile out of Harry.

It didn't work.

Finally, when Pomfrey left and Harry didn't touch his breakfast, Tonks asked if he wanted to take a walk. Harry looked reluctant, but when he remembered that soon this room would be crawling with his friends – friends he couldn't quite yet face – he quickly agreed. Tonks performed a Disillusionment spell on Harry, which turned the boy into a walking chameleon which was nearly invisible, and they began walking aimlessly through the castle. Due to the events of the previous evening and that it was a weekend morning, the castle was nearly deserted, luckily for them.

Eventually, they made it to the top of the North Tower and silently observed the slow-moving stratus clouds that thinly covered the sky like spun sugar. Figuring that no one would come up here – and if so, he would just use a face modification charm quickly – Sirius transformed back into his human self. He stood to one side of Harry, Tonks on the other, and gently squeezed his godson's shoulder as they observed the outside world.

"So, how are you feeling?" Sirius finally ventured to say; praying that he would be able to comfort Harry.

Harry shrugged. "Can we talk about something else?" he asked in a tone that almost sounded pleading.

"Of course," Sirius quickly said. He certainly wouldn't push the boy to speak until he was ready – in fact, he was still pissed that Dumbledore had forced Harry to tell everything which had happened last night when the boy had been obviously upset. Never mind that maybe it had been for the greater good to know everything as soon as possible, he didn't like anyone upsetting _his_ godson, dammit.

"So, when did you get here?" Harry turned to him curiously. "Are Willow and anyone else here?"

Sirius visibly winced and a guarded look came into his eyes. He knew Harry loved Willow like an aunt at that point – she and Mrs. Weasley were likely the only mother figures the poor boy's had – and he was reluctant to tell Harry what had happened.

"Er, Harry, maybe we should talk about something else," Tonks said hesitatingly.

"Why?" Harry asked in a loud, suspicious voice. "Is Willow okay? Is Dawn okay?" His voice rose significantly in anxiety as he spoke the second name.

Raising his hands to get Harry to calm down, Sirius shook his head. "They're fine, they're in Sunnydale."

"Oh. Good," Harry sighed. "Why didn't they come with you?"

Sirius was silent; he wasn't sure how to answer. He didn't like lying to Harry, especially when he turned those Lily-green eyes on him – Lily was infamous in her ability to get each one of the Marauders to squeal like a pig under her gaze. "I—I'm not living there anymore," he confessed quietly.

Harry's eyes widened until they were as round as Galleons. "What… What happened?" he asked, in a way that children do when they are trying to understand an adult problem.

Pursing his lips, Sirius leaned slightly over the edge of the open window, so he'd have the outside to concentrate on instead of Harry's saddened face. For a moment, he briefly wished he had a broom to jump out on and get away from this uncomfortable situation.

"Willow… she and I parted ways."

"But, _why_?" Harry exclaimed in an outraged and surprised tone. "I thought you two loved each other!"

Sirius winced as his chest clenched with a sharp pain. "Yeah… so did I, Harry. But she left me… for Kennedy."

"What? For that pretentious, bitchy tart?" Harry shouted in anger.

Turning to him in shock, Sirius wasn't sure whether to high-five the boy or chastise him on his language. Tonks seemed similarly conflicted, judging by her suppressed giggle.

"Yeah, 'fraid so," he answered simply.

Harry was contemplative for a moment. "But… why'd you leave?"

"Harry," Sirius snorted sarcastically. "You really think I could bear to stay and watch Willow snog that slag?"

Harry gnawed on his lip for a moment with an upset look on his face before his eyes hardened with a new realization. "But—but they're fighting the First Evil! And—and people have already died! How could you leave them, Sirius? They _need_ you!" Harry asked angrily.

Sirius' breath caught in his throat; Harry had never been angry with him before. "Harry, I couldn't stay!" he declared in a pleading tone. "It—it would have _killed_ me to see the woman I love with someone else. Don't you understand?" he asked in surprise; growing more uncomfortable with the idea that Harry was mad at him… as well as feeling guilty when a little part of his mind agreed with the boy.

"Harry," Tonks said quietly as she gently touched his shoulder.

"No," Harry shook her off angrily. "Sirius is a powerful wizard and he could help them. But now, by leaving, someone could die. Someone like Dawn or Willow or anyone!" he threw up his arms in a frustrated gesture.

"You know, Sirius," Harry began saying in that same angry tone. "When I was tied up in that graveyard, I tried to think of someone brave and I thought of you. Good thing I didn't know about this sooner, because I'd have needed someone else to think of."

"They don't need me," Sirius bit off harshly, furious that Harry would say such a hurtful thing, and even angrier that he heard a kernel of truth in those words. "Caleb is dead, Alecto is dead, Lucius is dead, and I am sure that Luke Matthews and the First will be taken care of, soon enough."

Harry paused and his green eyes blinked at Sirius' words. His anger seemed to deflate as he gave Sirius a cautious look. "Wait, what did you say?"

"They do *not* need me," Sirius said stiffly.

"No! No, the other thing. You said all those people were dead?"

"Yes," Sirius answered in confusion.

"That's what I thought," Harry murmured. "Dawn had written to me about that and, of course, we all heard about Draco's dad being killed by some, quote, 'American magic official,' due to illegal activities."

Giving Harry a perplexed look he asked, "What are you talking about?"

"Lucius, Lucius Malfoy," Harry spoke up suddenly. "Last night when Voldemort was talking to the Death Eaters, he said that someone didn't die like everyone had thought and that Lucius would pay for his new allegiance!"

Sirius felt his world fall away at the astonishing news. Lucius wasn't dead? He… he was alive? Suddenly he began to wonder about everything they had assumed had happened in Sunnydale.

According to Harry, Voldemort had said Lucius Malfoy was alive, and *that* meant that Luke Matthews probably had not been a traitor, or if he was, then it was either because he was under an Imperius or Malfoy used polyjuice.

Great Merlin, he had to tell Willow – well, Remus, anyways. They needed to know.

Sirius took a deep breath. "Are you sure?"

"Yes!" Harry said urgently. "Why? Do you think something bad is going to happen in Sunnydale?"

"Harry," Sirius stated as he squeezed Harry's shoulder. "It's nothing to get too upset about. I'll notify Remus immediately, and they'll be able to take care of it." Silently, he hoped that was true.

"Perhaps we should get going, then," Tonks suggested nervously; no doubt thinking of Xander.

"Let's," Sirius said as they began to make their retreat out of the tower. Tonks was the first one to open the tower door and immediately knocked into a woman with large eyeglasses –the Divination teacher, he recognized.

"Oh, sorry!" Tonks squealed.

"Quite alright, quite alright," she said dreamily as Sirius bent down and helped the woman to her feet. She held onto his arm to right herself and, suddenly, her body went rigid and her eyes misted over.

"Professor Trelawney?" Harry questioned.

She began speaking in a rasping voice that sent a shiver of apprehension down Sirius' spine.  
_  
"Red Witch  
Bespelled Until True Love's Kiss  
Controlled by a cursed ring  
Given to her by the Ice King_  
A heavy weight thudded in Sirius' stomach as he listened and he barely even registered Trelawney abruptly regaining her senses.

He will make her his bride  
They will sit at the First's right side  
Her Spell will go unsaid  
Resulting in bloodshed

The girls will all die  
All because of the two-faced spy."

"Oh, thank you, dear," she said absent-mindedly to him. "Now," she mused, "why did I come up here again? Hmmm. No matter. I feel a sudden urge to look into the tea leaves," she mused as she made her way past them and down the stairs.

Sirius just stepped backwards until his back was against the wall, his mind whirling with a maelstrom of thoughts. He knew Trelawney had had the original vision that sent Lily and James into hiding so long ago, and he also knew that she'd had a vision in front of Harry last year about Voldemort returning.

He also knew that the last half of her vision had been the exact same one that Luke had told them – the one that his Aunt Sophia Asp had and Luke had only heard part of it.

"Sirius?" Harry inquired nervously. "What was Trelawney talking about? Was it about Voldemort?"

"I don't think so, Harry," Tonks said sadly. "I think it was about Sunnydale – that last part was the same one we already heard."

"The Red Witch," Harry whispered in realization. "Willow."

"But who's the Ice King?" Tonks asked. "And what kind of cursed ring?"

Sirius spoke slowly, knowing that once the words were said out loud they would be real – and that Willow was in real danger.

"Someone gave Willow a ring days before I left," he said in a hushed voice as he remembered what Spike had said in the 'Man Cave.'

"Who?" Harry asked.

"Kennedy."

"Kennedy?" Tonks wrinkled her nose in confusion. "Well, she didn't look like an Ice King to me."

Sirius met their eyes and spoke gruffly. "Unless that's not really Kennedy Monroe… and whoever is pretending to be her is the _real_ two-faced spy."

Tonks gasped. "And if Lucius Malfoy is still alive - well, his hair and manner alone makes me immediately think of a cold, winter day."

"We have to go," Sirius said urgently as he began rushing to Dumbledore's office, in his panic barely remembering to cast a glamour on himself. "We'll see if Dumbledore can get me and Buckbeak there quick, somehow." With that, he also sent a Patronus to Buckbeak to inform him of the news.

"You?" Tonks said in outrage. "You mean, _we_, cousin. I'm not letting you go alone. Besides," she added cheekily, "I have been telling Xander that we need to schedule a visit."

"And I want to go to!" Harry gasped as he ran.

"No way," Sirius decided. "You've been through enough and this is liable to be much more dangerous." Which was amusing, if he thought about it. Who would have thought years ago that one day Sirius would think something was more dangerous than Voldemort. Then again, the First Evil did outrank the wicked wizard.

"But Sirius! I want to help! I can help! After all, I did face off with Voldemort last night—"

"—And you got _very_ lucky, Harry. Very lucky. But you can't go with us; more so, you still have school."

"School?" Harry asked incredulously. "What does school matter when people I care about are in danger of _dying_?"

Impulsively, Sirius hugged Harry. "I know this is not easy for you, Prongslet. And you did beautifully last night. Beautifully. But trust us that we will take care of our Sunnydale friends. Can you do that – trust us?"

Harry stared at him sullenly before nodding slightly. "Alright," he whispered.

Sirius swallowed a sudden lump in his throat as he wondered, if things did go south, if this would be the last time he ever saw his godson. Affectionately, he ruffled the boy's hair – remembering how he would jokingly do that to James when they were younger – and smiled. "Be careful, Harry. I'll see you soon, promise."

"Sirius?" Harry said in a quiet voice. "I'm really sorry about what I said to you earlier. Er, I was just… scared," he admitted. "You're not a coward."

"I know, Harry. I love you. Take care, alright?" he said with a forgiving smile.

"Yeah, see you, Harry," Tonks added

"Bye," Harry said before he made his way to the hospital wing.

Once they made it to Dumbledore's office, a new emotion began to enter Sirius – relief. If Willow had been bespelled by a cursed ring right before he left Sunnydale, then Willow had never wanted to leave him at all! Maybe the ring did mind control like an Imperius Curse, or maybe it was something else – either way, Sirius felt the weight of the last two weeks lift off his shoulders. Willow loved him.

Quickly, he began to feel guilty for leaving and not staying to fix things – maybe if he had stayed, he would have figured out there was an outside force at work. But just as quickly, he pushed that thought of his head – this line of thinking would not help him rescue Willow.

"Come in," Dumbledore said after Tonks knocked.

Stepping in, Sirius was not surprised to see a very tired Dumbledore surrounded by a stack of parchment. "Professor, Trelawney had a vision about Sunnydale. We think Willow's been cursed and that it's the work of Lucius Malfoy."

"Malfoy?" Dumbledore asked in surprised. "I thought he was killed in Sunnydale."

"So did we. But Voldemort said in front of Harry last night that he was still alive and serving a new master."

"Well, this is distressing," Dumbledore said as he drew himself up and walked towards the fireplace. "Last thing we need on top of Voldemort is the First Evil truly rising to power. Now, I assume you two need to get to Sunnydale?"

"Yes, and Buckbeak, as well," Sirius stated.

"Of course," Dumbledore mused. "We need to do this quickly because the Ministry is watching the castle and time is pressing in Sunnydale – it is almost dawn there as we speak."

"Ah, yes," the headmaster smiled satisfactorily as an idea came to him, before tossing floo powder into the fireplace. "Amelia McGonagall, Devon!" he shouted.

A bright-eyed witch with a dark hair that looked alarmingly like Minerva answered. "Yes, Albus? What is it? The girls and I are about to have a late breakfast."

"Amelia, there is news on the situation in Sunnydale and they need to be warned. Can your coven send a hippogriff, Sirius, and Nymphadora Tonks" – his cousin visibly flinched – "there via portal?"

"Hmm, two people and a hippogriff is not easy, but certainly doable with the entire coven there. I'll assemble everyone and you send your people here," she stated matter-of-factly before disappearing.

"Will that do?" Dumbledore asked them as he turned away from the fireplace.

Sirius gave him a relieved smile. "Thanks, Professor."

* * *

A/N:

Thanks for reading :)

Please let me know how you likey!


	88. Connecting

**Connecting**

**A/N:**  
My soundtrack while writing this chapter was the 'Inception' soundtrack. It's totally epic, badass, and also melancholy… perfect for this and upcoming chapters :) I invite you to listen to it as you read, if you like.

Oh, and I'm back from my vay-cay (both yay! and booo!) and am working on the remaining chapters. Hopefully they'll be out soonish?

BTW: At the Sunnydale Memorial FanFic Awards (.) this story won the following:

Best Book Crossover

Best Plot

Best Romance

and Runner-Up for Best Unfinished Fic

So WOW! Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU to everyone who voted! Eeeeeeep I was sooo not expecting that but I am definitely giddy like a cute lil fangirl author haha. "You like me, you really like me!" *grins* Thanks guys, you are the best readers ever!

* * *

Buffy roused herself from the bed she had shared with Spike, feeling within her bones that it was almost time for things to begin.

With a soft look, she gazed at Spike, who was still asleep in his basement bed. After the preparations had been completed last night, she had dealt with Angel by gently breaking it to him that she did feel something for Spike, and he'd reluctantly admitted to her about Cordelia – and _wow_ did she never see that coming! Eventually, they made their way to a 'good' place that had Buffy feeling relieved. Angel was, after all, her first love and he would always be important to her

Spike, on the other hand, was something different.

To be honest, Buffy still didn't understand what she felt for him, but he was in her heart. After the talk with Angel, she had gone down here to see him and Buffy had been relieved that Spike hadn't pushed it. Instead, they just relaxed together and eventually went to sleep in each other's arms. The entire night had been something out of a dream, because now, upon waking, she felt utterly content with his presence at her side.

"Buffy?" he murmured sleepily with slow-blinking eyes. "You awake, luv?"

Her heart fluttered slightly at his the sound of her name slipping past his lips. "Yeah, it's getting close to dawn. And, ya know, I gotta make sure I eat the most important meal of the day before I fight the Big Bad!" she joked in a dry voice as she swung her legs over the side of the bed.

"Yeah, you'll be needin' your Wheaties." Then he let out a snort of laughter as he sat up. "Hell, when you finish off the First Evil, you better get an endorsement deal from them."

She chuckled at the comment, but more so, she felt warm at his unconscious display of complete faith in her. Not 'if' she finished off the First Evil, but 'when'.

"I'll look into that," she said wryly.

Spike slid over to her side of the bed and pressed himself suddenly against her back as he wrapped his arms around her.

"You've got this, pet," his resolute voice came muffled through her disheveled hair.

Buffy clutched his arms and squeezed once in thanks. "I know," she replied honestly in a soft voice.

* * *

Anya let out one last, shuddering moan as Remus collapsed onto her. He quickly rolled over and she slid, slick with sweat, into his side and embraced his warmth. Her bedroom was in complete disarray, she noted distractedly as her eyes glanced around the room. Blankets and sheets were twisted half on the bed and half on the floor, several of her 'toys' were lying discarded around the room and, somehow, some dried chocolate syrup had gotten splattered onto the wall.

Turning back, Anya regarded her boyfriend with a loving look as he smiled widely at her, still panting.

Remus John Lupin really was the best thing that had ever happened to her… and she fervently hoped that they didn't die today, so that maybe, one day, she'd be able to work up to courage to tell him that.

* * *

Having bonded over their share of Kennedy pranks in the last two weeks and working together in the Leadership Team meetings, Dawn had become much closer to Vi and Rona. The two potentials were clearly the lieutenants to Buffy and Faith's positions as commanders and the three had bonded over being the main teenagers during strategy sessions. Luna, while always there, never really counted, since she seemed to be in a class of her own. Not that they didn't adore the Guardian, but none of them had gotten particularly close to her. Kennedy had also been in the meetings, but her bossiness and snobbery had long ago set Vi and Rona up to disliking the older girl.

Now it was five in the morning, and the three girls were making Eggos, pancakes, cereal (about the only thing Dawn could 'make'), omelets, and so on, for the soon-to-rise army. And even though they were about to enter into the craziest battle of their lives, the girls were keeping busy with gossip.

"Zo-ma-_gawd_, did you guys see Sofia flirting with Connor last night after dinner?" Vi said snidely as she flipped a pancake. "She was all like 'Ay papi' and Connor was like 'what does that mean?' and then she said, 'Oh, daddy', and he was like 'Why would you call me your father?"

Dawn and Rona snickered as Vi let out a little cackle of her own.

"Dude, that's hilarious," Rona laughed. "I kinda love how Connor's all socially stunted – he always says the best things."

"What'd Sofia do?" Dawn inquired with an amused look.

"Oh, you know her," Vi rolled her eyes. "She's so dramatic and got huffy before going to find something new to interest her ADD mind."

"Well," Rona said with a sly look at Dawn before raising her eyebrows at Vi. "At least *she* had the ovaries to try to pull him."

"Oh, shut up," Vi grumbled good-naturedly.

"Ovaries?" Dawn said in confusion.

"Yeah, instead of how people always say, 'oh, that takes balls.' I mean, let's face it – woman grow a tiny person in their body before pushing it out of a tiny orifice. Being a woman is *way* more bad ass," Rona snorted as she set out the paper plates.

The other two girls laughed and Vi added, "Yeah, let's not forget how women are also slayers and the only ones chosen to fight against the forces of darkness."

There was silence for a moment as the girls continued with their tasks. Finally, Dawn broke the silence to comment on what they were all thinking.

"So, how does it feel? To know that, in a few hours, you two will be slayers?" she queried with interest.

Vi and Rona exchanged looks.

"Honestly, I can't really believe it," Rona acknowledged with a bit of a shrug. "To be honest, I never wanted this life. Yeah, after being here for a while, it started to grow on me but it's scary – people have died, there's always some big bad trying to kill you… So, I dunno. I dunno what to think," she said with a shrug.

"However," she said in a brighter voice. "I _do_ know that it will be nice to have the super powers so I can take care of myself and kill some nasties," she grinned.

"Right on," Vi smiled. "I'm totally down with it. I mean, I'm not sure what my family will think – when Mr. Giles called, he had to pretend he was some religious boarding school 'cause my mama back in Dallas is hardcore like that – so, I'm hoping they don't think I'm a freak and kick me out or something." All that was said in a rush of words and Vi turned around quickly back to the stove lest her friends see her eyes shine with unshed tears.

Not that it helped; Rona and Dawn had seen the display of emotion and knew that Vi was a lot more worried than she let on. Rona walked over and wrapped her arm around her friend while Dawn took the other side.

"Hey," Rona said softly. "No matter what, you got us."

"Yeah," Dawn agreed brightly. "The good news is, if we die today, you won't have to get worried about getting grounded tomorrow!"

Vi and Rona shot their witchy friend a glare while she just snickered in amusement.

* * *

Luna dreamed of her grandmother last night.

The lucid dream had felt so real that when she woke up under the shining moonlight that escaped through her blinds, she forgot where she was for a moment. Knowing that she would never be able to fall back to sleep – especially since, judging by her clock, it was shortly after five in the morning – Luna decided to take a walk outside. Not bothering to change out of her salmon-pink cloth nightgown that was decorated with ribbon and frills, Luna slipped silently into the backyard through a side door.

It was raining lightly, as it had during their visit to Portland, and she could feel the wet grass slipping in between her bare toes. Her long nightgown trailed over the ground and soaked up the moisture as she meandered slowly through the yard.

Her dream…

Her face scrunched as she tried to remember it, and bits and pieces of it flew by in wild, vivid colors, like a toucan bird soaring through a moonless night. Her grandmother had been talking to her about the Scythe and that it needed to be protected at all times, that it would be the final instrument against evil. She had whispered to her about other things, warnings for this day, but all she could remember was a song her grandmother had sung.  
_  
Spirit and flesh,  
Are not ready to mesh.  
Luckily this time,  
You've prevented this crime._

But where there is a will, there is a way,  
A Kwanza Bovu will have his say.  
Forged in blood and fire,  
He will be sired.

Salt the Devil's Trap,  
His power will be wrapped.  
She will strike with the Scythe,  
And rejoice as he writhes.

The song, even only spoken in her memory, sent shivers down her spine. If her grandmother had been right, then A Kwanza Bovu was not yet ready to be made flesh as it had been thousands of years ago… but that it was plotting a way to be sired, nonetheless.

That statement was truly troubling, yet what was more troubling was her grandmother's instructions to 'salt the Devil's Trap' to bind its powers. What did that mean? Were they all supposed to get tattoos like Remus, or draw a giant salted symbol in the cavern? And how would they be able to do the latter?

There had been some more talking in the dream, of Luna needing to search for her heritage when A Kwanza Bovu is vanquished, but she thought it was more pertinent that she try to remember anything else from the dream and then tell Buffy and Faith.

She was entering the backyard when a shadow interrupted her mindless gazing at the ground. Looking up, she saw Kennedy give her a victorious smile.

Luna was not particularly fond of Kennedy, since she thought the older girl was rather rude, mean, and bossy to everyone, not to mention that with Willow, Luna had noticed a controlling aspect to their relationship.

Additionally, Luna felt loyalty towards Sirius… but Kennedy was another potential slayer, so Luna supposed she should feel loyalty towards her, as well. Sometimes she felt guilty that she didn't feel the same slayer-Guardian bond with Kennedy as she did with all the other potentials – Luna should stay more open-minded about the girl.

"Oh, hello, Kennedy. Why are you up? Are you nervous about today?" Luna questioned lightly.

"Have to say," she began with an eerie smile. "I was feeling nervous about today… but after seeing you here, walking outside alone, I am feeling much better."

"Oh?" Luna responded with eyebrows that rose in mystification. "Why is that?"

"What can I say? You just inspire that bit of happy, glowing 'Guardian' feeling," she smirked as she stuck her hands in her pajama pockets.

Luna smiled. She really wasn't used to this 'Guardian' business.

"Thanks," she replied humbly. "Would you like to continue walking with me? I smell someone cooking breakfast and thought after another round around the house, I would go in."

Kennedy's eyes glittered in the faint moonlight and her wide smile radiated happiness.

"Actually, I have a better idea."

"What are you thinking?" Luna asked curiously.

Whipping out her wand, Kennedy grinned as she pointed it directly at Luna. "Maybe we should practice our Defense Against the Dark Arts before the big battle."

Luna's face screwed up in confusion. "I wasn't prepared to do anything strenuous before breakfast. Perhaps afterwards, when it is lighter out?"

How odd. She knew Kennedy enjoyed sparring, but the girl seemed much more eager than Luna would have expected.

An eyebrow rose in amusement. "I never was one much for patience. How about—?"

The backyard door opened with a creak and, after turning on the porch light, Angel stepped out with a middle-aged man who was wearing a ball cap and a flannel shirt. Kennedy hastily shoved her wand back into her pocket and scowled at the interruption.

"Oh, I wonder who that is?" Luna asked softly.

"Who knows. Uh, you're right – sparring should come after breakfast. I'm going to get ready. See ya," Kennedy said quickly before she shouldered her way past Angel and the strange man on the back porch.

"That one of the potential slayer gals?" the man said gruffly as he stared at Kennedy's retreating figure.

"Yeah, that's the one dating Willow. They're both witches," Angel answered as the vampire sat down.

"Witches?" the man exclaimed as he sat next to Angel in an old patio chair. "God damn, Angel. It's bad enough I associate with a vampire – soul or not – but there are witches here?"

"Don't worry, Bobby. Not all witches are black-hearted. There are two types working with us – those that use a wand, and those that worship Gaia," Angel reassured the other man. "Besides, you'd think by now you'd understand that evil and good don't always come in simple black and white packages."

"Yeah," Bobby snorted. "You'd think I'd know that by now… but you have to remember how us Hunters operate, Angel. Ain't a lot of good supernatural types out there. If we hesitate while we try to figure it out, we're liable to end up dead."

"Yeah," Angel sighed. "I know it's tough, especially for you puny humans without the super powers."

Bobby gave him a dirty look while Angel winked at the man.

"Last time I ever drive overnight to save your ass," Bobby grumbled as he pulled out a container and a long needle.

"Excuse me?" Luna called out. She had become fascinated by their conversation and instantly recognized the name 'Bobby' as the Hunter who gave Remus the Devil's Trap tattoo.

She walked up to Bobby and shook his hand. Hmm, that was interesting. When they touched hands, Luna felt a spark of recognition… similar to how she felt with the potentials, but there was a different sort of energy involved.

"Hello. I'm Luna Lovegood."

"Luna Lovegood, huh?" Bobby said with a small smile. "I'm Bobby Singer. Are you one of the potentials as well?"

"No," Luna shook her head. "I'm a witch and a, um, the Guardian."

Bobby gave her a calculating stare with a hint of fear in it. "A witch, huh?" He glanced at Angel then back at her. "So which kind are you?"

"A wand witch. I go to a school in England."

"Oh. So, uh, does that mean that Remus is a warlock, too, since you're both from there?" Bobby asked with a considering look that made her think he was trying to get over his typical instant dislike of people like her.

"Oh, he's a wizard. We don't use the word 'warlock' - not since the Count Wolfe Wymund of Winthrop made it unfashionable in the late 1500s when, instead of becoming an evil warlock, he wanted to be called the 'Dark Lord of Drudgery'."

"Man must have liked his alliteration," Angel snorted in amusement.

Bobby squinted at her. "Huh. Well, alright, then." He seemed fairly amused by her answer.

"Are you here to help us fight against A Kwanza Bovu?" Luna asked him.

"We're fighting an African-American holiday?" asked a perplexed Bobby Singer as he glanced at Angel for confirmation.

Luna burst into loud laughter. "Oh, you are—" she wiped away the tears of laughter streaming down her face. "—Funny!"

Angel took that moment to explain to his very confused friend what the slightly strange girl meant.

"Luna is the last Guardian – her people have watched over the slayer since the beginning of their existence. A Kwanza Bovu means 'the first evil' in the language of their ancestors."

"Oh, okay," Bobby nodded, happy that the young teenager was calming her fit of hysterical laughter. "But isn't she a bit young to be here? I know I almost thought about calling my friend John to help man the second wave you wanted us to set up in L.A., but his boys are only twelve and sixteen, and I didn't want any kids around this hellhole."

Angel started to speak but Luna answered for herself. "Evil does not know age nor gender nor race, Mr. Singer. I must be here with those that I am responsible for." With that statement, she nodded sagely to both of them and went inside.

"Strange girl," Bobby commented as he began to administer the Devil's Trap tattoo on Angel.

"She is," Angel said in a fascinated voice as he watched the door she went through – at the same time, all too eerily reminded of another girl he once knew who seemed to walk both the physical and spiritual plane.

* * *

An hour later, soft sunbeams were striking into the darkness of the world as the sun began its slow ascent into the dark sky.

The Summers' household looked like a Wal-Mart at five a.m. on Black Friday, there was so much madness that could be seen. Robin Wood had commandeered two school buses to transport their small army to the school, and there was a flurry of activity as weapons were loaded and teenagers began filtering in amongst a great deal of nervous chatter.

"Okay, you hot, young thangs, who wants to be on the Fun Time Party Bus?" Lorne exclaimed brightly as he stood outside his bus that was painted a bright green, thanks to a spontaneous art project last night led by Karen, Ida, Juliet, and Caridad, four of the girls who missed art class the most when it came to skipping school to fight evil. The paint, of course, came from a mini-shoplifting mission at the local home supply store.

"Or, you know, you could ride the Super Crazy, erm, Awesome…and Cool Party Bus!" Fred invited from the bus that she was responsible for driving. Her bus had been painted by her and the geekier math-loving potentials – Erica, Amanda, Ruriko, and Chao-Ahn – with a series of numbers and mathematical equations that made everyone else's eyes hurt. At least the numbers were painted in bright colors and gave off a sense of cheerfulness.

Wesley paused outside before he stepped on the bus. "Fred, are you sure you're comfortable driving this? It is a rather large vehicle."

Fred gave him a dead-panned look and answered him in a dry voice.

"Wesley, I grew up in Texas. This," she gestured towards the bus, "is nothing." Then she let out a very Fred-like giggle and grinned. "No worries. As long as I don't have to rope cattle while driving, we should be fine."

"Indeed, then vampires would be the least of our problem," Wesley smiled before he got onto the bus, turning once to give Fred a lingering look that she was oblivious to.

"Yo, munchkins! Let's get a move on!" Faith shouted out as she herded more potentials into the buses. "We wanna be there right when the sun is in the sky! Let's go!" The second slayer was outfitted in denim and a black tank top with weapons – crossbows, a sword, and daggers – strapped to her.

Xander grunted as he stowed some of his stolen supplies, the ones that didn't fit into his 'borrowed' van, onto Fred's bus.

"Man, good thing this stuff is gonna be worth it, or else I'd be pretty cranky at carrying it first thing in the morning!" he said to Robin, who was helping him lift the final item.

"Yeah, too bad these girls aren't slayers right now – we could use their strength," Robin added.

"True, but you heard Willow – as soon as she does a spell of this magnitude, every supernatural being in the area, maybe even the country, will know. We don't want to give the First a head's up, so we can't do the spell until we're already set up in the cavern."

Robin shrugged. "Yeah, I suppose that makes sense," he conceded.

Willow watched all of this commotion with a deep-seated worry in her gut that seemed to be burning her alive from the inside.

All these people – people she loved, people she cared for – were going to be her responsibility in less than an hour. It would be up to her to complete the spell properly, and up to her to keep them safe that way. If she messed up, they would be destroyed by the creatures waiting in the cavern. If she turned all veiny and black-haired, then they would also be destroyed – except by her, instead.

She gnawed her lower lip and fiddled with her fingers obsessively. What if she couldn't do this?

A small hand placed itself on her lower back. "Will? How you holding up?"

Willow gave Kennedy a relieved smile; already feeling better by her presence.

"Okay, I guess. Still though – promise me that if I go evil, you'll stop me, okay?"

Kennedy gave her a reassuring kiss and hugged her gently. "Be confident in yourself, Willow. You can do this."

Leaning into her warm embrace, Willow smiled. As always, Kennedy was right.

…Still…As Willow cuddled next to Kennedy and watch the buses get loaded, she couldn't help feeling suddenly that something was going to go wrong today, regardless of Kennedy's reassurances.

* * *

The sky was filled with contrasting warm dark blues and bright blues and pinks by the time the two buses and one van arrived at Sunnydale High School. As the fifty potentials slayers, two slayers, two ensouled vampires, one dhampir, one demon, five magic users, and six 'normal' humans got off the buses they were greeted by a welcome – although not unexpected – sight.

Standing at attention in black uniforms with Ak-47s, rocket launchers, swords, knives, and a host of other weapons on their back, were fifty of Wolfram and Hart's top company 'security' team members. Behind them was an M-4 American Military Tank, likely retrieved through the usual Wolfram and Hart method of bribery and blackmail. Circling the school was an Apache helicopter that featured two machine guns hanging on each side of the open doors. In contrast to this fearsome sight was a petite brunette woman wearing a smart, dressy blazer and pinstriped skirt.

"Eve," Angel greeted her with a blank face as he walked up to the woman with Buffy and Faith. "Have to say, I wasn't sure if you'd come through on this."

Eve gave Angel a blinding smile. "Angel, you are the CEO of Wolfram and Hart's Los Angeles branch. Of _course_, I'm going to do as you request and bring out our top security officers as cannon fodder."

Angel smirked. "Buffy, Faith, this is Eve. She's the Liaison to the Senior Partners."

Both Buff and Faith ignored Eve's outstretched hand.

"She evil?" Buffy asked with a raised brow while Eve scowled at her.

"Probably," Angel shrugged.

"So why're you lawyer people helping us, 'sides Angel tellin' y'all to?" Faith asked the clearly irked woman.

"Well," Eve glanced at Angel, "this particular apocalypse does not fit into the plans of the Senior Partners and they do not want to see the First Evil take over the world."

Faith and Buffy looked at Angel. "Well, some company you got there, Angel," Faith smirked.

"Got us some reinforcements, didn't I?" Angel responded with an eye-roll. "The helicopter and tank will take out any Turok-Han that escape from the school and also prevent anyone else from sneak attacking us. The security squad will come with us and take out what vamps they can with the artillery rounds; they'll be working with Xander, Robin, & Gunn inside the cavern."

Buffy regarded the reinforcement's with a cool, assessing look. "Alright, as you may—" she began to say to the security forces but Faith immediately clamped a hand over her mouth.

"B, love ya, but I can't let you give one more 'pep' talk. We don't want these boys in black to run off, now do we?" Faith grinned.

Glaring at her, Buffy sniffed and turned around to face the rest of their army, who had been getting all their weapons together. "Ok, troops! Move out!"

Angel barked orders to the Wolfram and Hart team to recognize Xander as their commander and transport the weapons down to the school basement. Xander, of course, began calling them the B.I.B. Squad, an acronym for 'Boys In Black' that he found amusing as he issued them additional orders.

Kennedy and Luna left for the Principal's Office to set up for the spell; the office was directly above the Seal.

Faith, Spike, Angel, Connor, and Gunn led the girls into the basement while Remus, Anya, and Wesley took their cauldrons of potions down there as well.

Dawn and Fred went to go assess the hallways that they would be patrolling, both enraptured by the other's extensive knowledge of dead languages.

Finally, there was just Buffy, Willow, Xander, and Giles as they stood awkwardly in the hallway corridor. All of them were nervous, all of them were slightly fearful, and none of them knew what to say.

Then, unexpectedly, Buffy broke the silence with a cheerful voice. "So. What do you guys wanna do tomorrow?"

Without realizing it, the four of them released a long-held breath and followed Buffy's lead.

"Nothing strenuous," Willow said.

"Mini-golf is always the first thing that comes to mind," Xander mentioned in a bright voice.

"Well, I think we can do better than that," Giles scoffed at his practically-adopted children.

Buffy shrugged. "I'm pretty much thinking about shopping. As usual."

"There's an Agnes B. in the new mall!" Willow informed the others eagerly, thinking of an entire abandoned mall with only the four of them in it.

"I could use a few items," Xander agreed with a thoughtful expression.

Giles looked disturbed by their comments. "Well, no, aren't we going to discuss this? We're saving the world to go to the mall?"

In his opinion, the first thing he wanted to do was spend time at the British National Museum and relax amongst some of his favorite artifacts. Or, hell, buy the finest scotch and lock himself up in his apartment with a day of relaxation and classic rock albums!

"I'm having a wicked shoe craving," Buffy admitted with a grin.

Xander cocked his head to give her a suspicious look. "Aren't you on the patch?"

"Those never work," Willow shook her head dismissively.

Giles rolled his eyes and spoke in a light, sing-song voice. "And I'm just here, invisible to the eye, not having any vote..."

The three young adults begin walking away from him, creating a Xander-sandwich, as they continued to prattle on about shopping and accessories, leaving Giles standing alone cleaning his glasses.

"See, with my eye, I can either do all crazy mad scientist magical-eye look _or_ wear the eye patch and look dashing," Xander grinned.

Buffy pretended to think for a moment. "Right, but with the eye patch, you can go with the full black secret agent look—"

"—Or the puffy shirt pirate-slash-poet feel. Sensitive yet manly," Willow excitedly interjected.

"Now you're gettin' a little renaissance fair on me, Will," Xander groaned good-naturedly.

"It's a fine line," Buffy agreed.

Shaking his head, Giles turned away from them and sighed as he made his way to find Dawn and Fred.  
"The earth is definitely doomed."

**

* * *

**

**A/N:**  
Yes…some sequel spin-off got set up in this chapter…You can probably guess for who :)

Lemme know what you think!

** 'That Takes Ovaries" is a collection of short stories exemplifying the bravery of real women in the world. I read it in my Women's Studies 101 class back in college. Great book - *and* excellent point!

** The last bit of dialogue between our main four came directly (except the magical eye part) from the episode 'Chosen' and was retrieved from .com. I wanted to pay some homage to that episode – since I am clearly changing many things – and that bit of dialogue always makes me smile :)


	89. I'm a Genie In a Bottle, Baby

I'm a Genie In a Bottle, Baby

A/N:

Aren't you pleased with me, Dearest Readers? I wrote this on the bus ride home yesterday! As I adjust to being back home and not traveling like a gypsy, I'll try to finish this story up as quickly as possible. (and yes, my trip was awesome! Beyond words awesome! It's bittersweet to be back *le sigh*)

On a very happy note, I would like to say **THANK YOU** to everyone who voted in the SunnyD Awards for Willow's Thief! This story received the following awards:  
*Best Romance  
*Best Book Crossover  
*Best Plot  
*Best Unfinished – Runner Up

*grins like a crazy person* Yay! Thank you verrrrry much!

* * *

The portal opened up slightly below a layer of thick fluffy clouds just outside of the Sunnydale city limits. Buckbeak faltered for a moment, but quickly adjusted to being airborne as he carried Sirius and Tonks towards their destination.

Sirius wished that the Devon Coven could have sent him directly to the Summers' house but Amelia said that, due to the dark evil energy masking the area, the coven was unable to penetrate into the city limits. His chest was tight with worry as he wondered what Lucius Malfoy/Kennedy was doing to his love right now. Beads of perspiration formed at his temple and he was clutching Buckbeak's feather so tightly that the hippogriff made a noise of annoyance.

He was sure it would work out, though. Right? After all, they had just heard Trelawney's prophecy and that meant whatever bad was going to happen, hadn't done so yet. In fact, he was sure that they would arrive at the house, Sirius would calmly (well, after beating the bloke into a bloody mess) unmask 'Kennedy', and everything would be fine. Sure, there was the First to consider, but if they got rid of its greatest servant, then they would well be on the way to vanquishing that foe.

Yet, while all that sounded so very reasonable and logical, Sirius could not shake the burdensome weight of failure that seemed to soak through his very bones. What if he was too late? What if he had failed Willow by leaving her?

What if…What if he truly was cursed to be the one responsible for seeing every person he loved die due to his unwise decisions? James, Lily… and now maybe Willow. All ultimately failed by him.

And while he tried to hope that this time he could make a difference, there was a mocking voice at the back of his mind that reminded him that he, Sirius Black, was a nobody. He was no man of stature, no man of success. Before Azkaban, he may have fought in the Order but he had done nothing else of value. Now he was a convict, thought by the entire world to be a mass murdering Dark Wizard. At a time like now, he really didn't know if he had what it took to make a difference today.

"Oi, Sirius? What's that up ahead?" he heard Tonk's voice drift past his ear. Pulling himself out of his dark deliberations he looked forward. There, circling the air about a hundred feet up from the 'Welcome to Sunnydale' sign were thirteen witches and wizards hovering on broomsticks.

Immediately, Sirius grasped his wand. "Whatever it is, it can't be good."

"Thinking they're playing for our Quidditch team or the First's?" Tonks questioned in a suspicious tone that instantly reminded Sirius that his cousin was truly an Auror at heart.

"Buffy and the others thought that there were spies in the Ministry that were responsible for the attacks on us," he mused out loud. "But… if Lucius Malfoy is masquerading as Kennedy, then it's likely he's the culprit, not the Department of Magical Affairs."

"Should we drift down and ask?"

Sirius felt conflicted. He desperately wanted to see Willow, but at the same time thought it would be good to have back-up from the DMA as well. There was no way he would allow any loopholes this time around.

"Let's make a brief stop," he decided with a small amount of regret.

By the time they became level with the other witches and wizards, all had wands pointed at them. "Name and purpose of travel!" demanded a pompous wizard who looked like he had been hit with a bludger too many times.

"Nymphadora Tonks, here to see The Slayer to give her intelligence on the First Evil," Tonks swiftly answered with an air of urgency in a cool voice.

"You sound English," a red-haired woman began suspiciously. "Our Secretary banned international relations with you all. We'll need to take you into custody for questioning."

Sirius bristled at the baker's dozen of witches and wizards. "Lives are at stake and we are going in," he all but snarled. Diplomacy be damned!

A loud pop sounded and a new woman apparated into their midst on a broom. She wore an air of importance like it was a cloak and narrowed her eyes at everyone, finally coming to rest upon Sirius, Tonks, and Buckbeak. Seeing them, her eyes widened slightly in surprise. "The hippogriff! You all must be with the Slayer," she said cautiously, as if she could not decide if that was a good or bad thing.

She turned to a blond witch and gave her a satisfactory nod. "Well done, Agent Williams, on messaging me for this."

"I remembered what you said about the hippogriff, ma'am!" the youngest witch said eagerly while her peers shot her disdainful looks.

"We're not going anywhere with you," Sirius informed her in a harsh tone as his mind thought about possible escape maneuvers.

"Don't be worried, Sirius Black, we're not here to harm you," snorted the older woman. The others gave Sirius a second, long look and gasped at the realization that there was a known murderer in their midst. "My nephew, Luke, told me about your dilemma. You are safe within my borders."

He felt his temper flare. They were wasting time!

"That's bloody great news, but I've got to tell my ex-soon-to-be-current-girlfriend that there's a Death Eater impersonating a potential slayer," he said in a sarcastic voice with flaring nostrils, shrugging Tonk's hand off his shoulder as she attempted to calm his temper.

"What?" the woman screeched. "Are you sure?" she added in a low voice.

"We heard a prophecy and put together the pieces. You're Katherine Asp, right? I recognize you from the front page photo in the Daily Prophet after the Fudge debacle," Tonks said in a smoother tone that tried to make up for Sirius' attitude. "What are you all doing here?"

"We've been forbidden to enter, thanks to the Slayer's mandate," she rolled her eyes.

"But last week, my niece Jenny, Luke's cousin, was kidnapped by a masked man," Secretary Asp continued in a mournful but strong voice. "The only evidence in the case is a single platinum strand of hair that Jenny ripped out during the fight. However, my agents have deduced finally that she was apparated here to the Sunnydale area and we've been patrolling the area for the last two days."

Tonks frowned at the statement, pity in her eyes. "Is she…?"

"Her mother's family clock said she was 'deceased' shortly after she was taken," Secretary Asp informed them with guarded eyes and a voice that rasped slightly like worn sandpaper.

Sirius felt something poisonous clench in his stomach. A girl was killed here recently… It had to be Lucius Malfoy's work.

"Now, if only your people would agree to work with us, instead of thinking that my nephew was a servant of the First Evil, maybe I would be able to find the culprit," Secretary Asp added in a clipped voice. "Especially because he is still missing… perhaps even dead as well." She gave the two of them a heady stare that was weighted down by grief and regret.

"Well, we'll let them know," Sirius said in a softer voice – he could see in the secretary's eyes that she was experiencing an acute sense of emotional pain.

"Please do," she responded in a similarly softer, yet still stiff, voice. "We've noticed several vehicles arriving from the Los Angeles area and I'd certainly like to know what is going on here."

"Actually," Sirius added, "why don't you lot come with us? We'll need the authorities to apprehend the Death Eater." Even though Sirius wanted to bloody Malfoy up and possibly couldn't do that with the authorities with him, he wanted to make sure there was no way in hell that Malfoy was going to weasel his way out of this.

A predatory smile stretched along Katherine Asp's face as she realized that soon she may be faced with her niece's killer. "That sounds like an excellent plan."

* * *

The caravan of flying witches and wizards probably appeared odd to any observers, but luckily, Sunnydale was devoid of human life besides those living in the Summers' house. Along the way, Tonks explained everything – Sirius didn't have the energy to waste on them at the moment. They flew quickly to the house and his first observation was how quiet the area was. The sun was just rising but, usually, there was at least one group of perfectionist potential slayers who were up exercising outside at this time of day.

Once again, that acidic pain clenched in his gut as his mind ran through a dozen different horrifying scenarios.

As soon as Buckbeak landed, Sirius was up and running into the house. Not surprisingly – since they had so many wards around the house – the door was unlocked and he skidded into the hallway, glancing around like a madman.

"Willow? Buffy?" he shouted at the top of his lungs. Tonks followed him in and he gestured for her to explore the first floor while he ran up to Willow's room. Flinging the door open, he found it to be sparse and immediately began calling people's names as he then began opening every bedroom door. He ordered the DMA officials to explore the third floor, but he could not hear them finding success either.

With every door flung open exposing an empty room, he felt an emptiness inside him that began to grow. Was he too late?

Once downstairs, one look amongst all sixteen of them informed him that the house was completely empty.

"Where could they be?" he asked gruffly as his hand strangled his wand.

"Maybe they're on a mission again, like at the vineyard?" Tonks asked in a questioning, but almost pleading voice.

Sirius met Tonk's eyes and for a moment he forgot his own pain as he realized just how worried and frightened his cousin was. Her brow was furrowed and she was gnawing on her lip, which was a trademark sign that she was anxious. Limp brown hair hung in her eyes and her eyes were wide with apprehension.

"If they are, then they're in trouble if Malfoy's led them into a trap again," Sirius said in a gruff tone as he tried to keep the emotion out of his voice.

"Hold on," Tonks informed as she laid out her wand in the palm of her hand. "Point me to Xander!" she commanded. The wand hesitated for a moment before it began spinning wildly in a circle prior to flinging itself against the wall.

"Dammit!" Sirius snarled, more than pissed off at the world. "Must be the First; they screwed up all of Willow's locating spells as well."

"Well, I suppose we can split up and search," Secretary Asp suggested.

"That'll take too bloody long," he said with gritted teeth as he ran a hand angrily through his long hair. "If only we had Andrew around – that kid always knows everything; the little sneak."

Tonks' eyes widened in excitement. "Wait! Xander told me that Andrew never gets to go on missions, so he should be here. Right?"

Sirius smiled for the first time that day. "Excellent. _Accio Andrew!_!" he called, assuming that a simple spell would be able to pick anyone up in the vicinity.

There was a rush of air from the stairs and all eyes looked towards the stairwell. Sirius was surprised that he didn't hear the boy screaming at being flown, but then he was really surprised when a gleaming golden lamp clattered at his feet.

"What the…?" he trailed off in confusion.

"That's a bit off, 'innit?" Tonks whistled.

"You friend…is a genie?" Secretary Asp asked in a bewildered tone.

"He wishes," Sirius snorted as he picked up the lamp. He felt silly holding a lamp, but he couldn't help but wonder what was inside there if his spell had brought it to him. With a shrug, he began rubbing the lamp vigorously, while praying for something helpful to happen.

And then something did begin to happen. Curling smoke issued from the tip of the lamp and, suddenly, two figures were released from its confines. Without hesitation, everyone pointed their wand at the figures and when the smoke did clear, he saw that Andrew and a brunette-haired woman were sprawled on the floor, wearing dirty and disheveled clothing.

"Andrew?" Sirius shouted in surprise. "Why the hell were you in a lamp? Where is everyone?"

Andrew coughed and blinked his eyes sleepily, but he brightened when he saw Sirius' face. He jumped up and hugged the man tightly.

"Oh Sirius, I should have known that you would come back!" he declared fervently.

Sirius shrugged out of the embrace and held Andrew at arm's length. "Andrew, this is important and we're on limited time. Where is everyone and who put you in that damn lamp?"

"Oh! Well, see, Kennedy put me in the lamp. Or, well, I thought—"

But Sirius didn't pay attention to Andrew's next words because at that moment the brunette girl shakily got to her feet and looked at them all with wide eyes.

"_Malfoy_!" Sirius snarled as he raised his wand and let out all of his anger and hatred into his next spell.

"_STUPEFY!_"

Andrew yelped as Sirius raised his wand. "No! Don't!" He leapt to push the girl out of the way and caught the tail-end of Sirius' spell. Letting out a high-pitched shriek, Andrew was flown across the room and landed heavily on top of the couch.

"Andrew? What the hell were you thinking?" Sirius demanded angrily.

"He was _thinking_ that I'm not the dude you're looking for; the one who's wearing my body, thanks to polyjuice," the girl snapped irritably as she ran to help an extremely dazed Andrew up.

"Wotcher?" Tonks asked in confusion.

"Right, because Lucius Malfoy would have stuck himself into a disgusting and tiny lamp with Andrew here," the, Sirius presumed, 'Real Kennedy' added with a sniff as she rolled her eyes.

Sirius shook his head. Of course. If Malfoy was impersonating Kennedy, then he needed to keep her around to steal her hairs. In fact, he saw that the girl was missing clumps of hair.

"So where's Malfoy then?" Secretary Asp questioned.

Kennedy shrugged. "He stole one more batch of hairs from me last night and threw some bread down at us, saying it would be our last meal because he wasn't coming back."

"Where was he going?" Sirius asked quickly.

She squinted as she tried to remember. "Um, said that this morning was the final battle at the Seal – wherever that is."

"Final battle?" Sirius hissed in shock as he shared a dour look with Tonks. "The Seal is at the school – we've got to get there."

"Williams, Miller – you two take Andrew and Ms. Monroe back to Columbia Village. Along the way, inform the Office of Secret Services that the First is unleashing its final battle," Secretary Asp barked. "Everyone else, we'll accompany Mr. Black and Ms. Tonks to the battle." She smiled grimly. "I'm sure that the First is responsible for my niece and nephew – I will avenge them.

Sirius nodded. Oh yes, the First Evil and Lucius Malfoy were going to get what they deserved today.

* * *

The principal's office appeared so normal – bookshelves, a desk that they shoved against the wall – that a part of Willow could not believe that they were directly above the Seal of Danthalzar at the moment. She sat cross-legged in the middle of a circle of crystals that would help her focus for the spell. Luna and Kennedy stood near the closed doorway, giving her encouraging looks, each seemingly confident in her abilities.

Wow, did she sure wish she had their confidence.

Because right now, Willow Rosenberg was definitely not one hundred percent sure about Buffy's crazy plan. The last time she had evoked such primal power was a year ago, and it had been in her attempts to murder her villains and destroy the world. This year, with the help of Giles, the coven, Sirius - _ugh, why did her flesh crawl at the thought of him?_ - and Kennedy, she had improved greatly at exercising control over her powers. But still, since her moment of darkness at the docks, she had not attempted to truly touch that source of power inside of her. She was… afraid.

She gave Kennedy and Luna a weak smile. "Remember – if I go crazy, just remember to take me out," she said with a weak laugh.

"You'll be fine, Willow. I'll be here if you need help focusing, but you won't need me – I know you can do this," Luna assured her in confident and dreamy voice. She wished that Luna was older – at her age the girl could potentially help, but she didn't have the power or experience for a spell of this magnitude. They had gone through exercises last night and it became evident that Luna wasn't ready.

Kennedy smiled from her position next to Luna. "You'll be fine, Will."

Willow sighed, nodded, and took one more deep breath as she ran over everything once more.

Yes, she was afraid of her magic, still – even after she had continued to do magic with Kennedy. But strangely, each time afterwards, it almost became harder to control her magic. Kennedy told her it was her fear that was holding her back from truly reconnecting with her powers and that it would pass eventually. Willow figured she was right – she still was afraid of going all Elvira, Mistress of the Dark again.

But this time… this time there were lives counting on her. Her friends, innocent girls – heck, even morally ambiguous law firm conscripted killers – were all counting on her. If she really thought about it, the entire world was counting upon her. So she had to do it. There really was no way around it.

With one more deep breath, Willow put on her 'Resolve Face', placed her hands on the Slayer Scythe, and began her focusing chants.

* * *

Lucius Malfoy smiled in anticipation as Willow closed her eyes and began harnessing her power. He was so close now, closest to the greatest amount of power that a mortal man could have. Power as the right hand of the soon-to-be-ruler of the world, incredible physical power from the essence of the slayer, and his magical power as well.

He smirked as he thought of how his Dark Mark burned at the moment, seemingly pleading for him to re-join his former master. The First had confirmed his thoughts that, yes, Voldemort was once again flesh, but he was nothing compared to what Lucius would soon become. It was amusing, really, that after so many years of serving Voldemort soon he, Lucius Malfoy, would be the one served and worshipped by the dark wizard.

Yes… he could see it now… Once everything was complete in their new world order, Lucius would go back home with the Dark One as his Queen and his son would apprentice with him. While relations with Narcissa had always been strained, he did love his son. Yes, with his son by his side, he would assist the First Evil into enslaving all the filthy muggles that plagued this earth like cockroaches, and he would reign supreme above the wizarding community. Throughout it all, he and Willow would rule with an iron fist.

A low chuckle escaped his throat. Yes, he was so close to what he wanted that it almost made him giddy… If a man of his stature ever allowed such a thing, that is.

With Willow focused on the spell and Luna focused on watching her, Lucius prepared himself for the next phase of his plan. The First Evil wanted the Guardian for itself, so he was not allowed to kill her, anymore. Therefore, he pointed his wand at Luna and muttered "_Imperio"_ and mentally 'reminded' her that Buffy needed her down in the cavern quickly. With glassy eyes, the teenager left listlessly out the door and Lucius smiled in relief. No one seemed sure what powers came with being a Guardian, and he had been unsure if such a spell would work on her. The Imperius, of course, was powerful but nowhere as powerful as the cursed ring he had procured for Willow.

He pulled out his mood pendent and held his hand over it, activating the stone to push feelings of love into Willow. He knew that this next step was absolutely crucial and that if he didn't exert enough control over the witch, she would balk at his suggestion. Kneeling next to Willow, he tapped the chanting woman on the arm. "Will?"

"Hmm?" she asked in a distracted voice.

"Willow." He gently shook her again. "I've got news."

Her green eyes snapped open. "Is everything okay?" she asked in a nervous voice.

"Everything's fine," he calmed her. "Luna just had a vision and re-wrote the spell. She's off to go tell Buffy other things she saw in her vision as well." Lucius handed her the modified spell that he had created.

"Oh," she said with furrowed brows as she began to read. With each line, her brows raised higher and higher.

Lucius sighed internally. This may be more difficult than he presumed.

"Ken," she turned to him with wide eyes. "I know my ancient Afrikaans is not the greatest, but I think this spell is supposed to steal the slayer essence from the scythe. Are you sure Luna wants us to do this spell?"

Lucius did his best to act confused and shrugged. "I dunno, Will." Ugh – he despised using stupid American slang this past half-year. "But we can't really go against her, she _is_ the Guardian after all."

Willow stood up and shrugged. "Yeah, I know but… there's something wrong with this spell. I can feel it."

Bollocks. She said the same thing last time when he convinced her to do that wards spell that involved the lion sacrifice – that was actually the sacrifice of that pestering Jenny Asp who was searching for her cousin, Luke, and trying to talk to her ex-girlfriend, Kennedy.

Looking her straight into the eyes, he focused on his pendent and _pushed_ the love into her mood ring and, thus, her soul. "Willow, don't you trust me? This is the right spell – the only one that can save our friends."

"But, Kennedy—" she struggled to say but he knew the power of the ring was crumbling her resolve. "It's… We can't… This feels… wrong." Perspiration beaded her forehead and her body shook slightly from the internal battle. Lucius knew he was pushing her more today than ever before, but it was necessary. Perhaps, had he had a few more weeks, the power of the ring would have made her a willing servant, but now he had to play the hand he was dealt.

"It's what we have to do, Willow," he stated as he focused on pouring even more of the ring's power into her. It was now glowing a brilliant pink, the color of love.

The green eyes dulled to a glassy sea-green and her body stilled. He had to hide a triumphant grin – he knew the ring was working.

"Are you ready to do the spell and save Buffy and Xander?"

She nodded dully; her typical spark snuffed out by his mind control. He hated to see her this way, really, but it wasn't _his_ fault that she was so hard to control, after all. Besides, once she did a spell as dark as this one – under his control or not – her body would once again be so addicted to dark magic that she would never look back. In fact, it was almost like he was doing the poor girl a favor!

"Alright, Willow. Sit back down and perform the spell exactly as it says on that parchment." Another subtle nod, and the red-haired woman was once again cross-legged on the floor.

This time, he allowed himself to laugh out loud – sure that it really wouldn't matter what he did now in front of Willow, since she was so completely under his control. However, he frowned when his laugh came out deeper than normal. Dammit. Glancing at the clock on the wall, he realized that his last batch of polyjuice was wearing off. A frown slid over his face as he realized he would need to get some more, quickly.

Then he laughed again. What in the bloody hell did it matter? Willow was going to do anything he wanted, regardless of what he looked like, and none of the other little 'Scoobies' were going to see him until it was too late and his master was snapping their spines!

His laughter went on and on in a maniacal way. Soon, after so much work, so much hardship, he was finally here to reap his just rewards!

"Hmm, not only are you a drag queen, but a comic as well – judging by all that laughter," a gruff and not-at-all amused voice came from the doorway.

* * *

A/N:  
Thanks for reading! :)


	90. The 'Super Best Friends' Fight Back!

The 'Super Best Friends' Fight Back!

**A/N:**

Greywizard is one of the best betas out there and I thank him for his support for this story and looking over this chapter. Gracias!

This goes out to gibby101, Misellaneous101, and savingjuliet for all their awesome reviews that they've been doing for so many chapters. The time you take to leave a comment is *sincerely* appreciated and I thank you for that. :)

* * *

Lucius' eyes widened at the familiar voice and he whirled around in a flash of movement. "_Ava—_!"

A silent burning curse hit him in the arm and Lucius dropped his wand as he writhed in pain.

"Fuck off, you blond moron," snorted his opponent, just as a leather boot hit him squarely in the face. Following that, there was a loud SNAP as Lucius heard his wand being broken in half.

"How did you get here?" Lucius gasped as he righted himself.

Sirius Black gave a wicked, malevolent smile as he looked Lucius up and down with knowing eyes. "Heard that full prophecy, mate. Figured out that underneath that bird outfit is a piece of shite, washed-up old Death Eater."

His eyes glanced over at Willow, who was heavily focused on her chanting. "Willow! Are you alright?" he called, his voice tinged with worry.

"You filthy blood traitor!" Lucius hissed as he struggled to stand up, the pain in his wand arm diminishing. Perhaps he couldn't fight the fool off without a wand, but he could still distract him until Willow finished the spell. Then Lucius would be strong enough to snap the man in half!

"You kiss your mother with that mouth?" Sirius joked darkly as he landed a swift upper-cut into Lucius' face.

Lucius stumbled backwards and chuckled evilly. "No, just your girlfriend," he retorted.

Sirius felt a sea of rage swell up inside him and he let out a terrifying warrior yell as he lunged for the wizard, forgoing magic in a deep-seated desire to feel his flesh make contact against his enemy's. He struck the heel of his right hand against Lucius' nose – feeling satisfaction at the cracking break – and then kneed the man in the stomach, leaving him wheezing. Moving faster than he ever had – in thanks to the many martial arts lessons from Buffy – Sirius wound his hand around the Death Eater's petite female neck and slammed him against the wall.

"You fucking wanker," he hissed in a tone that dripped with poison. "I ought to kill you now."

Gasping, Lucius tried to fight back, but realized that Sirius was overpowering him. Dammit! If only the polyjuice would wear off faster! His voice was deepening and he felt his body slowly expanding, but there was no way he could physically get rid of this brute. That meant he would have to play a desperate card.

Focusing the pendant the hung around his neck, he gave Sirius Black a grim smile.

"Let's see what your beloved has to say about that."

* * *

After having each slayer and potential slayer give some of their blood to open the seal, Buffy led their army into the immense cavern. Faith, Spike, Angel, and Wesley followed the diminutive blond, the latter softly chanting a spell that snuffed out everyone's scent so the Turok-Han could not notice them. After all, as Spike had wryly pointed out, the scent of fifty scared-shitless little girls would certainly be more than enough to catch the attention of all the little nasties.

After the descent through the opened seal, they entered an elongated cliff that dropped steeply hundreds of feet and overlooked hundreds upon hundreds of raging Turok-Han. Each person there made a noise of surprise – a gasp, a throaty swallow, a muffled shriek – as they came into view of their opponents. Every primitive vampire seemed to jumping, killing, or fighting a mile from their cliff, appearing like a sea of tumultuous waves that threatened to drown them all.

"B," Faith hissed from her spot next to her slayer sister.

"Mmm-hmmm?" Buffy absently replied, so caught up in the fearsome sight.

"You said there was an army…but you never mentioned there'd be _this_ damn many!" she said in a hushed voice.

"Yeah…" she replied in a still-absent voice as her eyes gazed at the sight before her. "They look bigger in person, apparently."

Xander took note of the numerous uber-vamps and nodded grimly as his magical eye counted each of them, coming up with the total of 2,666. He let out a low whistle – they had taken on some badass evil in their day, but this *definitely* cut the cake. Glancing behind him, he observed that everyone was intimidated by the sight - even the hot-shot law firm security guys. In fact, his magical eye zoned in on the sight of at least two of them forming small puddles at their feet.

He smirked. He had _told_ them to use that bathroom prior to heading down to the basement. But _no_, they said they were 'tough'.

However, he was perturbed when he saw his fearless leader and her supernatural cronies looking freaked out. Not to mention the dozens of teenage girls behind them. He shook his head. That wasn't good. Clearly, he had to start things going until Buffy could take over.

His old military techniques coming back to him – as they tended to do when he really, _really_ needed them – he used a series a hand gestures to get the _B.I.B. Squad_ (Boys In Black Squad) over to the predetermined locations at the far left and far right of the ledge. From there, they were responsible for covering the soon-to-be-slayer-squadron as they descended into the cavern to destroy each uber-vamp and find the power source of the First Evil.

Next, he used similar hand signals to move Gunn and Robin to the far left of the _B.I.B. Squad_. Due to the explosive fun of the Mel Gibson and Danny Glover led movies, he thought it was appropriate to name their group _'Team Lethal Weapon'_ – him being the crazy Gibson character, with Gunn and Robin fighting over who got to be Glover. After an extensive Michael Jackson dance-off, Gunn was currently the winner.

He would be joining them in a moment and when the time came, they were responsible for playing with all the toys that he, Robin, Spike, and Dawn stole from the abandoned Army base the other day. By golly, he sure had missed that rocket launcher!

Catching Remus' eye, he motioned for him, Anya, and a still-chanting Wesley to move to the right flank with their cauldrons. Wesley's plan was to continue chanting until the battle began – because the uber-vamps would know they were there by then, anyway – and then assist the other two magic-users. Since the three of them had distributed magical charms (although he preferred to call them 'lucky charms') this morning, he had decided to name their group _'Team Magically Delicious.'_ Sadly, they weren't too appreciative of his rapier wit.

Remus, bless his heart, got an idea from playing the Mario Kart video game with Xander to create a shrinking potion for the vamps. While the vamps were impervious to magic spells, Remus' research had led him to believe that they were still susceptible to potions and indirect spell casting. Once the battle got started, the three of them would float the cauldrons over the rampaging Turok-Han and dump the shrinking solution on them until they were easily squishable.

Glancing at Buffy, he saw her giving him a relieved smile and a small nod of her head. She mouthed 'thank you' to him and he saw that gleam enter her eyes once more - that fighting spirit that had always made him admire her.

She barked off a couple orders to Faith, Angel, Spike, Connor, and the potential slayers to get into formation at the center of the cliff and prepare for battle. Last night, he was pondering on an appropriate name for them – after all, how often do that many super-powered people get together? Luckily, late night TV helped him out and he stole an idea from a South Park episode and decided to name them the _Super Best Friends Team._ Most of the teenagers appreciated it but Deadboy, as usual, wouldn't know a pop culture reference if it staked him in the heart.

Each member of the _Super Best Friends Team_ wielded a formidable weapon – axes, swords, machetes, daggers, etc. But the top weapon definitely went to Faith who was grasping a massive, heavy hammer that Xander knew from experience was not something to be trifled with.

Apparently – and Xander still didn't really get it, but he just figured it was a wacky Slayer thing – after Buffy and Faith had a psychic mind-meld over the Slayer Scythe at the vineyard, they both knew all about each other's past. He assumed it was a very Charles Xavier type deal. Anyways, Faith knew about Buffy's death and eventually came out and asked the blond what the hell had happened to the Olaf's Troll Hammer. Buffy had mentioned that she never went back for it and that Faith was welcome to it – something that had given the dark-haired Slayer an ear-to-ear smile.

Faith, needless to say, had such a devilish look in her eye at the moment as she experimentally swung the troll hammer that Xander almost felt bad for the poor little vampires.

Almost.

With another smirk on his face, he made his way to Robin and Gunn and readied one of the rocket launchers.

Buffy made eye contact with each of the soldiers under her care and gave them a confident look. "Okay, everyone. By my watch, Willow is preparing the spell right now and it should be completed very soon. Once the spell is complete, Xander, Gu—"

Xander cleared his throat loudly and Buffy rolled her eyes.

"—Team _Lethal Weapon_," another eye roll, "will fire the rocket launchers and the Wolfram and—"

"Ahem."

Buffy rolled her eyes at Xander but even in such a moment of seriousness, she couldn't help but smile slightly. "— the _B.I.B. Squad_ will back them up with their fun time weapons. Then, _Team Magically Delicious—"_

Xander grinned at her while the three magic-users glared at the one-eyed man.

"—will send out the shrinking potions at the attacking Turok-Han. All this should eliminate a lot of 'em right away and then we'll be going in. Questions?" Buffy asked them all.

"Uh, yeah," Rona said hesitantly with wide eyes as she looked out beyond the cliff. "Are they 'sposed to know we're here already?"

Everyone followed her gaze and saw that, yes, each Turok-Han had suddenly gone silent and was staring in their direction with such hate that it almost seemed to burn.

"Bollocks," Spike muttered under his breath.

* * *

Sirius tightened his grip on Malfoy's neck. "Don't ever mention Willow _again_!" he spat violently. It angered him to no end that Malfoy had manipulated his way into Willow's heart and he'd be damned if he'd let the wanker dare to speak her name.

Lucius wheezed and focused on using his amulet to force hate into Willow's heart. He hated to interrupt the spell, but killing Sirius Black was certainly a priority now. How dare that bastard try to thwart his plans!

At that very moment, Willow Rosenberg was roused from her spell casting and slowly stood to her feet. Yet, while her body moved jerkily like a puppet on strings, there was a small part of her in the dark depths of her mind that watched the entire situation with fear and anger. She knew that this new spell for that slayer scythe was wrong and now, she knew that Kennedy was just using her for her own evil purposes. She had tried to fight against Kennedy's suggestions, but it the experience was akin to swimming in hot lava – scorching, insufferable, and impossible.

Now, as she felt her body stand, she noticed that Sirius – Sirius! – was choking Kennedy against the wall. A rush of euphoria breezed through her soul as she stared at him. Sirius appeared almost as haggard as he had when she first saw him outside his cave. His hair was unkempt and wild, a manic light lit his eyes as he stared down at Kennedy, and he wore a button-up blue shirt that she remembered him buying long ago to impress her.

As she stared at the two figures longer ,more and more clicked into place. There was something – clearly – wrong with her and for the life of her she couldn't remember why she had started to hate Sirius… She loved him! And Kennedy… she had been a friend, and while she was attractive, Willow never imagined herself leaving her wizard for the witch. And now… now she saw the hate that filled Kennedy's eyes and knew the girl was pure wickedness.

For some reason a lion came to mind… a lion that screamed like a woman…

Ah! A sudden flash of heated anger coursed through her body and she saw her mood ring emitting a blazing red light. Looking at Sirius again, she felt that same hate that had forced her to leave him weeks ago… But no, that wasn't right… This wasn't real hate she was feeling. After all, she loved Sirius Black – didn't she? Why, oh why, was she so angry? She wanted to… to _kill_ him…

Her hand waved through the air and Sirius was flung against the wall with a grunt of surprise. Kennedy slumped, sputtering, to the floor and gave her a weak smile.

"Good job, my love," she rasped, her tone so lowered that it sounded almost masculine. Strangely, shocks of platinum white were streaking through her hair. "Now kill Sirius, my love. Kill him now."

Willow's gaze fell towards Sirius and once more that hatred pulsed within her. Ugh, she couldn't believe that _he_ was here. Hadn't he ruined her life enough?

Sirius was on his feet now and holding his wand out protectively in front of him. Grey eyes viewed her cautiously, but they seemed to plead silently with her as well. "Willow! Don't listen to him – he's evil!"

Don't listen to _him_? Her forehead scrunched in confusion. Who did he mean by that?

"Kill him!" Kennedy rasped again in a commanding tone.

Willow fired a body-binding spell at Sirius – for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to seriously injure him but she didn't know why.

_"Protego!_" he shouted and her spell glanced off his shield. "Willow," he pleaded. "You're under a spell! It's that damn ring!"

She frowned. Wait, hadn't she just been thinking that something seemed wrong? But it was so hard to keep track of her thoughts, everything seemed so fuzzy and slow, like swimming through gelatin.

_"Accio_ ring!" Sirius shouted and her mood ring was whisked off her finger.

The resulting void of emotional emptiness left her gasping and falling to the floor. Pain surged through her body as she tried to deal with the hole in her soul that the ring had left her with. That ring… the emotions… Oh goddess! Oh goddess, it hurt so bad! Why did she hurt like this? Tears streaked down her cheeks and soon, she felt herself pulled into masculine arms.

"Shh, my love. It's alright. You're free of his poison," Sirius' soft, loving voice murmured into her ear as he slowly rocked her.

Poison? No, that wasn't poison! It was… wonderfulness. A part of her. Already she could feel it calling to her… where had he placed it? She needed it. Yes, and she needed Kennedy. Kennedy understood. Understood her and her magic.

_'Yes, only I can understand, my love. Take his wand and I will fix your pain,'_ Kennedy said to her. Her voice vibrated between Willow's ears and she didn't even care at the moment why it was possible for Kennedy to use psychic communication with her. All she cared about was feeling whole again.

Sharp green eyes found the wand poking out of his pants pocket and yanked it out sharply. Sirius gave her a wide-eyed look and she returned the look with a fierce one that sent him magically sliding over the floor. Willow spun and deposited the wand in Kennedy… wait, who was this?

There was a man standing triumphantly in front of her with shoulders squared like a conquering general returning home. He appeared fatigued but handsome, with a nice physique and luscious brilliant blond hair that cascaded past his shoulders. Cool, grey eyes appraised her as a small smile played along the edges of his lips.

But…,wait… This was the man she had murdered! Lucius Malfoy!

_'Fear not, my love. Kennedy and I are one and the same. Now, begin preparing your spell again,'_ his voice sounded in her mind.

There was a sense of compulsion to follow his orders, but Willow stood her ground. The… spell? Wait, no! That spell was wrong, evil… just like that spell with the lion. She saw that now… and Sirius… she loved him! Lucius Malfoy was _evil_ and she would not listen to him!

"Willow! Fight it!" Sirius shouted and she could feel him rushing towards her.

_"Crucio!"_ Lucius snapped cruelly and she heard a whimper of pain behind her. She wanted to look – goddess, did she want to look! – but it was taking all of her concentration to not follow his command and finish the spell.

Tingles ran through her body and each seemed to roll over her like serpents on fire. They were sheer pain and passion, all rolled into one, each commanding her to obey Lucius Malfoy. Willow shook slightly from the strain and raised her head to meet Lucius' cold, dead eyes that viewed her with exasperation.

"Willow my love, why do you fight me? Soon, when this is all over, we shall rule the world!" he sighed, as if rebuking a small girl.

She gritted her teeth and fought against the compulsion, but a final arrow of flame struck her heart, and soon her soul was in chains again. Willow could not stop her feet from once again walking into the circle of crystals and sitting cross-legged. She could not stop herself from picking up the parchment and beginning the chants again. It was like she was imprisoned within her own body, her soul apparently broken and weakened by that ring she had been wearing.

A tear slid down her cheek, the only sign that her actions were not sanctioned by her mind.

* * *

The cavern shook with a thunderous roar as thousands of bloodthirsty Turok-Han began racing for seemingly easy prey at the top of the cliff. Vibrations ran through the bodies of the hundred-plus warriors as each person went to that place inside of themselves that gave them the courage to fight. For some, it was thinking about their loved ones; for others, it was about finding redemption. But for Buffy Anne Summers, it was about doing what she did best – saving the world.

"_Team Lethal Weapon_ and _B.I.B. Squad_!" she shouted above the din of stampeding feet. "Fire!"

"You heard her!" Xander yelled as he aimed his shoulder rocket launcher at the rear of the legion of vamps. Next to him, Gunn and Robin fired similar weapons and all three of them grinned at the fireworks.

Next, the men from Wolfram and Heart pulled out an assortment of heavy artillery weapons, including a M32 'six shooter' grenade launcher, M203 grenade launcher, and various shoulder launched missile weapons attached to AK-47 firearms. As the explosions went off, flames erupted into the air, vampires shrieked as they were either set on fire or blown up, and the earth shook extensively.

"Fire pretty," Xander commented happily with a nod towards his teammates.

"Always did love the color red," Gunn smirked.

"Buffy, has Willow done that spell yet?" Angel whispered to his former girlfriend.

Glancing back at the nervous-looking teenage girls, Buffy shook her head. "No, they're still the same. Besides, I'd think that Faith and I would have felt the spell work."

Angel looked down at the Turok-Han that were still approaching, their numbers lessened but still great. "We don't have a lot of time," he sighed.

"She'll do it," Buffy said confidently, even as her mind raced to figure out how to stall the vamps until then.

* * *

Sirius grunted in pain as Lucius flung him against the wall and bound him against it with magical rope. He thought that by taking off the evil ring that Willow would have been fixed, but clearly Malfoy's hold over her was too strong. However, he had seen her fight against the wanker, so there was still some hope to bring her back. The only problem was that Trelawney's vision called for 'True Love's Kiss' and he wasn't quite sure how he would be able to kiss her now.

Not to mention… True Love's Kiss? Hell, he loved Willow… he loved her a lot! But… was he really her 'True Love'? Sirius didn't really feel like he deserved that honor. 'True Love' was something they told in muggle fairy tales and never seemed realistic to him. Of course, he had never even been in love until he met Willow last year, so he supposed he didn't know a hell of a lot about love in the first place.

Frankly, he was hoping by taking the ring off her, she'd be healed and then he wouldn't have to test out the 'True Love's Kiss' thing anyways. What if he did kiss her and it didn't work? Then he would know that they really weren't meant for each other, and that he would be alone again.

He rolled his eyes at himself for even taking a second to ponder these things like a school girl. No matter what happened, he needed to save Willow and clearly the best attempt at doing so was to kiss her. Now, if only he could break free of this rope and ambush her with a kiss.

"You know, Black, a part of me wants to kill you, but I think it might be more torturous for you to watch your girlfriend perform a spell that will send her to the dark side. Don't you agree?" Lucius gave him an oily smile as he tapped _Sirius'_ wand against his chin.

"Fine!" Sirius snapped. "But at least let me give her a good-bye kiss first." By gods, he hoped Lucius would be stupid enough to say 'yes.' The rope that bound him was tight and without his wand, there was no way to get out of the situation.

"Aw, that's so adorable," Lucius sighed dreamily before he sneered at Sirius. "Unfortunately, my dear witch is busy at the moment stealing the slayer essence from the scythe, so I will have the powers of the slayer, so 'no.'"

Willow began chanting louder in an old tongue that sounded guttural to Sirius' ears. He wasn't sure what the scythe was, but Lucius Malfoy stealing the slayer essence didn't sound good. Dammit, he was running out of time!

"Just sit back and enjoy the show, old chap," Lucius grinned. "Because afterwards, you're going to die," he chuckled softly as he turned to watch Willow.

Sirius' mind raced with ideas on how he could stop Willow's spell. Frantic, he began calling her name in order to distract her – but Lucius shut him up with a silencing spell.

Desperate, he tried to think of another way to get her attention. If only he could communicate with her mentally or something!

Wait… Merlin, he was stupid! He had only focused on learning meditation after his kidnapping incident, but he could communicate magically with Willow, he was sure of it. After all, she was the one that taught him that everything was connected… even if he never before had been able to connect with anyone else while mediating.

The problem was that he had attention-deficient issues and was never able to connect with the world like Willow did. However… he shrugged mentally as he realized there was no other way.

Taking a deep breath, Sirius Black took the plunge into his own mind and magic. He followed Willow's advice and found his magical core deep within him that housed all his magical abilities. It was a radiant white orb that throbbed with power, almost like it was excited to be noticed by him. He imagined thrusting himself into the orb and the shock of becoming one with his magic was enough to send tingles of pleasure through his body.

He groaned inwardly at the feeling of ecstasy and tried to maintain his focus – connect with Willow, kiss Willow.

Pushing out from his magical core, Sirius felt himself spilling out of his body and into the floor. Willow was right – everything was connected! Down the hall he 'saw' Dawn, Giles, and Fred clinging tightly to their weapons, outside he saw Lorne worrying in the bus, Tonks and the other wizards and witches were heading towards the basement, Luna was about to step through the seal, and underneath her were his friends and thousands of terrifying beasts… and past them was something darker, something blacker than the blackest night… and it saw him.

Sirius' eyes snapped open and his heart constricted with fear as he began breathing heavily. Merlin, what the hell was that thing? Was that the First?

Grimacing at his weakness and ability to get easily distracted, he took several deep breaths and plunged back into his meditation, noting that Willow was not yet done with the spell, but he felt a strong sense of urgency. Soon, he was back where he left off and this time, he mentally approached Willow – and gasped silently at the state of her spirit.

Much of it was beautiful – a range of vibrant greens, pale blues, and light blushes of pink. But part of it, albeit a small part, was black as coal. Looking closer, he saw that there was something different about her soul than the others he had witnessed downstairs. Part of her was torn like some ravenous hell beast had been chewing on her for a period of time. The wound was fresh and it made his heart ache to see it – he could tell that Willow was hurting from it. In fact, the more he inspected it, the more he realized it must be the result of Malfoy's work. Only something evil could injure part of her essence away like that.

He wanted to heal her, so Sirius embraced Willow's spirit and gave her wound the softest of kisses – thinking of how often loved ones will 'heal' the other with a gentle kiss. When he kissed that part of her wound, it became awash with sunlight. Realizing that maybe he was healing her, Sirius traced the wound with light butterfly kisses. Amazingly, the wound appeared to re-knit itself and he felt Willow pause from her spell.

"Sirius?" she called hesitantly, her voice sounding like it was traveling to him underwater.

Abruptly, Sirius pulled himself back into his body and his eyes opened to reveal Willow running towards him. His heart sang as he saw by the bright look in her teary eyes that his love was back. Never before had she looked so beautiful to him than when she released his bounds with a simple wave of her hand and leapt into his arms.

"Oh Sirius!" she sobbed. "Oh goddess, I am so sorry. So sorry. I didn't know what the ring was making me do and, once I did, his will overpowered mine! Oh, goddess, please forgive me Padfoot, please forgive me!"

He clung to her like she was the only thing keeping him afloat in this ocean of hell. Fingers threaded through her hair and traced the contours of her body. "Oh my darling Willow, I love you. I love you and, of course, I forgive you," he whispered into her ear, his voice hoarse from emotion.

Willow pulled back slightly, her face wet with tears. "I love you, Sirius Black," she said in a trembling voice as her hands cupped her face.

"I love you too," he told her tenderly as he bent down to kiss her. The kiss was tentative at first – after so much heartache Sirius was almost afraid that Willow's recovery was just a cruel apparition. But the feel of her soft lips pressing against his, the taste of her that he had often wondered if he would ever be able to savor again… It really was her. Confident of their reunion, he pressed harder against her and slipped his tongue inside her mouth to truly taste her. She responded by yanking his hair lightly and he pulled her tight against himself.

_"Cruc—"_

Willow moved her arm and Malfoy's irritable voice was silenced as they continued their kiss for a moment more. Finally, she pulled back with a panicked expression. "Okay, more kissy make-up time later.

"First, I need to turn some fifty-odd girls into warriors," she smiled confidently as she gave his hand another squeeze and returned to her circle of crystals.

"Here's your wand back, by the way," she smiled again as she levitated a wand out of Malfoy's hand and sent it to Sirius.

"Thanks, luv," he smiled widely. Suddenly, he felt much more peaceful.

Malfoy let out a low groan and Sirius glared at the semi-conscious wizard. And now, suddenly, he was not feeling peaceful one bit.

As Willow began her spell, he used a spell to haul Lucius to his feet and bind him next to the door with nothing as mundane as rope. Nope, he used a combination of ivy, fanged geraniums (plants that bite humans), and bubotubers (plants that secrete a puss that burns human skin). Within minutes, Lucius was covered with burns and bites.

"Let go of me!" the wizard snarled.

"Oh, sure thing, Lucy, since you asked so nicely," Sirius answered dryly with an edge of malice in his voice.

"It wasn't me!" Lucius said rather shrilly. "I was just like Spike – being controlled by the First!"

Sirius took a deep breath, shook his head, and then punched Malfoy in the face hard enough to split his lip. He knew that the wizarding world looked down on physical fighting as opposed to magical dueling, but he found a lot of satisfaction in punching this pillock.

"Shut it, Malfoy. That excuse may have worked with the Ministry after Voldemort was defeated the first time, but you're mad as hell if you think it'll work for me," Sirius hissed.

Lucius cocked an eyebrow. "Do you plan on killing me then? I daresay your good witch would be against such a heinous action."

Just for fun, Sirius punched him in the stomach. "No, I think you'll make a sufficient work out dummy for a couple slayers I know," he stated with a smirk.

Lucius let out a mocking laugh. "You do realize," he said softly, "that my master is prepared for them all, yes? That, after today, all of you are going to be dead. Of course, Willow _would_ have been spared as my companion, but you just had to 'save' her. Now she'll be murdered just like the rest of you."

Sirius' jaw clenched and he fought not to give Malfoy a reaction. He was wrong. He had to be wrong. He did not suffer for weeks without Willow only to lose her again!

Just then, the door next to Malfoy burst open to reveal a snarling Turok-Han. Sirius jumped back in surprise and tried to hit the beast with a spell before he remembered that their hide deflected direct spells. The vampire gazed around the room until it spotted Willow, chanting with her hands on the scythe, at which point a murderous smile appeared on its ugly face. Panicked, Sirius used a spell to fling the first object he could think of at the vampire and knock him out the door. Once the beast was gone, he magically reinforced the door so it wouldn't be able to get back in.

Outside, Lucius Malfoy's shrill screams of terror and the sounds of blood drinking made Sirius' skin crawl with unease.

* * *

_"Wingardium Leviosa!"_ Anya shouted as she sent her giant cauldron over the legion of rampaging Turok-Han. Concentrating deeply, she slowly turned the cauldron over and let its contents drip over the unsuspecting vampires. Watching intently, she waited to see if the potion would work as Remus had hypothesized. The vampires shrieked where the potion splashed on them and quickly Anya realized that their shrieking was getting more and more high-pitched – they were shrinking! It was hard to tell from so far away, but the vampires were definitely shrinking!

"Yes!" she cheered as she jumped into the air. "Take that, you, you dirty vampires in bad need of a facial!" Eh, so maybe she would leave the insults to Buffy.

"Wonderful job, Anya!" Remus beamed as he gave her a quick kiss. "It's working!"

"All because you're a mad genius," she reminded him as their hands interlocked.

He rolled his eyes and gave her a bashful look. "Mad, yes. Genius, we'll have to see."

Then they went back to work, sending the Shrinking Solution over the vampires.

* * *

"They're starting to crawl up!" Faith shouted from her post near the edge.

"Prepare yourselves for hand-to-hand!" Buffy shouted as she hefted her sword up.

Vi gulped and gripped her sword tightly. She really had a lot of faith in Buffy and, er, Faith, but this was pretty scary. She thought by the time the Turok-Han started attacking that she'd be a slayer, not some scared normal girl!

A strong hand came to rest on her shoulder and she jumped slightly in surprise.

"Don't be nervous," Connor smiled gently as he raised his battle-axe. "First battles are always kind of scary, but you'll be okay."

Biting her lip softly, she gave him a quizzical look. "How do you know?" she asked him honestly.

Connor shrugged uncomfortably. "Because you're my friend… and I won't let anything happen to you," he promised with a serious look that made Vi's mouth go dry for a moment.

She nodded and gave him a small smile. "Thanks," she whispered shyly. He nodded in return and then turned back to face the incoming army.

Vi really, _really_ hoped she didn't die before Connor had a chance to ask her out.

* * *

Spike glanced back at the potentials to see how many looked ready to face the attacking army and faltered for a moment. "What the…?" he muttered as he saw a familiar blond head walking towards Buffy. Rushing towards her, he turned the girl around.

"What the hell are you doing here, Crescent?" he asked incredulously.

She blinked dreamily at him but her watery-blue eyes didn't seem to be completely sure of her surroundings. "I'm supposed to see Buffy," she informed him.

"Why?" he snapped in frustration.

Luna frowned. "I don't know."

A battle cry indicated that the first Turok-Han had made it over the cliff and Spike swore under his breath. Clearly, someone had bespelled Crescent, the dirty bastards. He threw the girl over his shoulders and rushed her to Remus.

"Crescent had a spell put on her to come down here. You can fix her, yeah?"

Remus inspected Luna quickly and nodded. "Yes; it was probably an Imperius Curse."

"Whatever the fuck it was, fix her and keep her safe," he ordered the wizard as he heard a potential let out a fearful scream behind him. With that, he turned and rushed into the fight and began kicking some uber-vamp ass.

* * *

Oh goddess, it was glorious.

She was connected to *everything*.

The Slayer Scythe, the potentials, Buffy and Faith.

And the rest of the world.

The feeling was euphoric as she tapped into that higher power and began distributing the essence of the slayer into every girl that could be a slayer. Willow could feel what each girl felt as she woke up with her newfound instincts and strength. For each girl it was different, but for all of them it was powerful.

And there were more than they had previously thought – there were hundreds of girls in the world that were receiving these gifts of power.

Through it all, Willow got to know each of them as she guided the essence into their spirits and bodies.

The power… it was like nothing Willow had ever felt. It was light - pure light that pierced through the darkest of places and set a balm on her spirit that over shone the darkness she had previously submerged herself.

When it was over, Willow fell back onto the floor like her bones had turned to Jell-O and all she could do was giggle.

"That was nifty," she sighed happily.

**A/N:**

*gasp!* I know…One baddie down, one baddie left…the end doth approacheth!

So I ask this question now – Obviously a lot of people are reading this story and seem to like it. I am pondering a sequel that will take place during the 5th Harry Potter book and be more HP-verse...

…Would you, Dearest Readers, like to see such a thing?

_(because a part of me is intimidated of writing a follow-up to such a popular story! Eeep!)_

~*~Thanks for reading!~*~

**"His old military techniques coming back to him – as they tended to do when he really, _really_ needed them" - Ah yes, this is me poking fun at all the random Super!Xander things and Buffyverse episodes where Xander knows military things (which…ok, wasn't much)

**.org/wiki/Super_Best_Friends - South Park episode where the 'Super Best Friends' consist of Mohammad, Jesus, Sea-Man, Krishna, etc.

**.org/wiki/Grenade_launcher – where I got my description

** – Sirius' plants came from this website


	91. Power

Willow felt herself gently being lifted up and her head coming to rest on a man's chest. Breathing in deeply, she had to remind herself for a moment where she was – the slayer activation spell had connected her with everything on earth and she was on a white magic high that had her feeling slightly loopy.

"Willow?" came Sirius' questioning and nervous voice. A hand ever-so gently caressed her cheek and she released a soft sigh at the feeling. Sirius felt, as always, firm and soft – a feeling that she now realized how much she missed. Curling her body into him, she snuggled closer as her brain frantically tried to process the most amazing moment that she had ever experienced – which was not an easy task. Therefore, all she could do was incoherently mumble, "Mmm-hmmm," in response to his questioning tone.

A calloused hand ran down the length of her body as he pulled her into his lap. "Willow, are you alright? Did the spell work?" he asked anxiously.

"Spell… good. Slayers, all of them," she smiled slowly as her eyes blinked sleepily at him. "It was amazing, Sirius. So much good magic…" Willow trailed off as she blinked back against her heavy eyelids. Clearly, that spell had taken a lot out of her.

But it had all been worth it.

* * *

Vi screamed as she ducked to avoid the Turok-Han's fierce fists. His foot moved to kick her and she ducked out of the way as quickly as possible, yet her ribs did catch a bit of the impact. She didn't understand – why hadn't the spell worked? Why wasn't she a slayer?

The vampire's face lit up with a grotesque smile as he crouched over her, reveling in her helplessness. Several Turok-Han had avoided the shrinking potions, rockets, and gunfire to climb up the cliff and all around her, girls were screaming…and dying. And as Vi looked into the beast's face, she realized with a heavy heart that she would be next.

A throaty, raging roar of a battle cry sounded to the right of her and the Turok-Han glanced away from Vi, just in time to see Connor swing his blade furiously at the beast. With a thick thunking noise, the sword embedded itself in the vampire's neck, and Connor shoved it all the way through with a loud grunt.

Vi, so sure that Death had come to claim her, could only stare at her savior in bewilderment. Connor, stern-faced in his warrior-mode, pulled her up by her wrist and lightly touched her chin as he moved her head to check both sides of her neck for bites.

He sighed in relief. "You're okay."

"Thanks to you," she told him, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.

Connor shrugged and his face tightened again. "I made a promise. Unlike some people, I don't break those." Then he swirled quickly to counter the strike of an advancing Turok-Han while Vi gripped her battle axe nervously.

She watched with bated breath as Connor flashed his weapon against his opponent and then she gasped as she saw another vampire come out of nowhere and throw Connor against the stone wall. Both vampires crept towards him with wicked, toothy grins and Vi's anxiety flared. After all, she had to stop them! Of course, she didn't really know how to do that without being a slayer…

"'Ey! This may be my first rodeo, but that don't mean y'all can focus on the man and forget about 'lil 'ol me," she spoke toughly as she gave the vampires a well-practiced sneer; and it was well-practiced thanks to some extra-long bathroom mirror moments.

Both vamps paused and growled menacingly at her as they turned slowly to face her.

Vi – worried about the fact that Connor still appeared dazed – kept up the tough girl act as she slapped the battle axe handle threateningly into her hand. "Yeah, you heard me. I'll beat you suckers like a rented mule!" A part of her inwardly laughed at using her grandmother's favorite Texan saying – she didn't use her home state's vernacular very often but it did tend to come up at the most random moments.

The Turok-Han crouched as they prepared to attack and Vi swallowed nervously as she said her final prayers.

But then, something miraculous happened.

Warmth blossomed in her chest and as Vi gasped, she breathed in hot, desert air. Strength ran through her limbs as her heart pounded ferociously in her chest. In her mind's eye, she saw a dark-skinned woman with dreadlocks and white face paint stare at her with a blend of sadness and pride. Her mouth opened to speak, but it was Buffy's voice that she heard.  
_  
"From now on, every girl in the world who might be a Slayer, will be a Slayer. Every girl who could have that power, will have that power. Can stand up, will stand up. Slayers. Every one of us"  
_  
A confident gleam entered Vi's eye and her arms gracefully slid her weapon through the first Turok-Han's neck and then the second, with more speed than she ever could have imagined. While Connor stared at her, flabbergasted, Vi smirked at the particles of dust floating in the air – all that remained of her opponents.

"Y'all know what they say – don't mess with Texas," she grinned before her eyes searched out her next victim.

* * *

"Jesus Christ! B!" Faith shouted to Buffy as the fought back-to-back against three Turok-Han. "You feel that?"

Buffy, still trembling from the after-effects of the slayer-activation spell, kicked back a vampire and shouted back.

"Yeah," she smiled as two Turok-Han in her eye-line were dusted by Vi. "Willow did it." A rush of euphoric relief went through her at the realization that their plan was back on track.

Faith whistled in awe. "'Bout damn time. Now let's take these bitches out!"

* * *

Remus had just performed a spell to freeze the side of the cliff so no more Turok-Han could climb up when he was knocked to the ground. Rolling over, the werewolf saw a salivating vampire tower above him with a bloody axe. A shrill shout – Anya, he realized – came from behind him and the ground beneath the vampire rose sharply and made the creature fall backwards. Quickly, Remus got to his feet and lifted his wand – only to have a potential slayer (or were they slayers now?) bump into him and make him drop his wand.

"Remus!" Anya called out fearfully as she used another spell to make the Turok-Han fall. "You alright?" His beautiful love seemed to glow in the firelight of the torches that lined the walls and Remus' resolve to get her out of this hell unscathed was further strengthened.

"Fine, love," he rasped, thanks to getting the wind knocked out of him, as he bent down for his wand. As he went to grasp it, his eyes traveled back to Anya and what he saw made his heart stop.

Anya was staring at him in concern and didn't even notice that right behind her was that same Turok-Han…whose axe was inches away from slicing into Anya's delicate shoulder.

Willow breathed in deeply as she tried to right herself mentally. Sirius' arms encircled her protectively and she raised her head slowly to meet his eyes. "We have to get the scythe to Buffy – she needs it for the battle."

His eyes glanced at the formidable weapon before going back to meet her own.

"I'll do it," he nodded. "When I was meditating I saw where they were." What he didn't voice was his reluctance to leave Willow alone in this weakened state.

She bit her lip because she was worried about Sirius venturing down there alone and then into the fray of battle. However, she knew that there was no other choice – since her bones were still Jello-y – and that Sirius had to go.

"Come back to me," she demanded in a soft voice.

His lips brushed hers carefully. "Always," he vowed.

* * *

Buffy barked out orders to _B.I.B. Squad_ as the newly enacted slayers were effectively dusting the uber-vamps who had crept their creepy asses up the cliff. "Xander said there's still three-hundred of these nasties that haven't been blown up or shrunk yet. I know we're out of rockets, so focus on one specific pocket of the vamps down below with your guns. We know that their hide is hard to pierce, but not impossible. With enough bullets focused on one area, we're bound to injure some of them."

As the men from Wolfram and Hart followed her orders, Buffy couldn't help but grimace. She really, _really_, hated guns, but in times like this, she needed everything she could get. To be honest, she felt trepidation at the fact that there were still so many uber-vamps left. With the amount of rockets and potions they'd prepared, they had been sure that their resources should have wiped almost all of them out, with the rest getting dusted through limited hand-to-hand combat.

But, gee, it seemed like the Powers that Be just _loved_ making her life difficult.

* * *

It felt like he was moving through water, time felt so slow.

Remus opened his mouth to scream as he raised his wand to strike at the Turok-Han attacking Anya, but he knew that he was going to be too late.

She was going to die.

After saving him.

**POP-POP-POP-POP-POP!**

Gunfire struck his eardrums as he saw the attacking Turok-Han fall soundlessly to the ground in a bloody heap with its head half blown off.. Anya whirled around with a fearful expression as her wide eyes took in Xander's taunt face and the rifle in his hands. Without a word, he strode towards the fallen – and now twitching – vampire and used a sword to decapitate the foul beast.

"Xander," Anya said breathlessly as her eyes were colored with both appreciation and fear at the near-death experience. One hand clutched her weapon while the other was pressed against her pounding heart.

Xander focused his one human eye on her as his magical one whirled around in its socket. "Be careful, Ahn," he said to her before going to help another fighting potential.

Remus pulled Anya into a brief, yet tight, hug as he pressed a hard kiss against her forehead. "Yes, do be careful, Anya. I can't lose you," he admitted softly.

Then, knowing that they were in the middle of a battle, he let go of her and prepared more spells to work against the raging Turok-Han below the cliff.

* * *

After encountering half a dozen Turok-Han during their trip down into the basement, Tonks and the other witches and wizards had finally arrived at the Seal. Without a moment's hesitation – she knew that Xander was likely down there somewhere – she plunged into the pit and emerged to see a scene straight out of the Old Testament play out before her.

Perhaps a hundred people – muggle military-looking men and teenage girls – fought in hand-to-hand with Turok-Han or used guns on the creatures below. In the pit were hundreds of the beasts, who were in a frenzy to make their way up the cliff. The entire cavern was lit with the flames from dozens of torches and several large fires that had begun below. The entire place was awash in brilliant oranges and reds while elongated shadows of claws and deadly weapons flashed over the walls. Bodies – both human and demon – lay scattered over the cliff and below in the deeper part of the cavern.

As her eyes struggled to take everything in, she noticed that Buffy was bleeding from a shoulder wound on the ground while Xander shot rounds of gunfire into a vampire's chest… but the creature was quick enough to evade most of the bullets and instead snatched the weapon out of the man's hand. In a flash of movement, gray, leathery hands were reaching for Xander's throat.

"_TURBO_!" Tonks shouted with a swish of her wand as her mind's eye pictured each Turok-Han being pushed over the cliff.

A rush of wind howled above the din of battle cries as an influx of air swirled counterclockwise until a wrathful tornado formed in front of Tonks and sped towards the creature attacking Xander. It struck the vampire backwards and then wove in-between each of the humans and 'good' vampires until it succeeded in pushing each Turok-Han off the cliff.

While the vampires roared in fury below, everyone on the cliff had gone suddenly silent and stared at Tonks, and the wizards behind her, in astonishment and confusion.

"Tonks?" Xander's voice slightly squeaked in surprise. "I know you wanted to visit sometime, but today isn't the best for a date night," he cracked with a slight – and incredibly relieved – smile.

She mock-frowned at him. "Yes, thank you ever so much for telling me about your life being in mortal danger, by the way," she rolled her eyes at him. To be honest, she was damn well bloody annoyed at the daft man for thinking that he shouldn't share such important details with her, but she would save that confrontation for another time. Right now, she was just thrilled to see Xander alive.

Buffy glanced down the cliff, noted that the ice spell of Remus' was still working, and turned her eyes to Tonks. "Not that I'm not glad to see you – 'cause yeah, that was awesome – but what the heck are you doing here? And who are your friends?"

Tonks grinned at Buffy. "Sirius and I both came back to help you lot fight and ran into some folks," she jutted her thumb backwards, "from the American Department of Magical Affairs. We figured, the more the merrier."

Buffy laughed weakly. "Not sure how merry this is, but more is always better." She turned back to everyone else and raised her voice. "Okay, Remus' ice spell is preventing them from climbing up here and so far I haven't seen any bow and arrow type weapons, so I think we have a moment to take care of the dead," Buffy swallowed heavily here, "and the wounded before striking again. Each team, take care of your teammates and use the healing potions that Anya brought.

After glancing to make sure that his teammates were alright, Xander rushed over to Tonks and stood awkwardly before her. "Thanks… for that tornado thing," he ginned nervously at her before his smile faded. "And, um, sorry I forgot to mention this minor apocalypse."

Tonks glared at him for a moment and then slapped his arm. "Ruddy hell, you better be sorry! A soddin' apocalyptic battle that you plan on fighting in is something that you should really tell your girlfriend!"

Xander's eyes widened before a glint of mischief appeared. "So you're my girlfriend?" he raised his brows comically and grinned.

With pursed lips, she smacked his chest this time. "Not if you do something stupid and get killed. Ok?"

While she presented a tough exterior, Xander could see in her eyes that she was really worried about him… and cared for him, which made his battle-heavy heart feel lighter at the moment. Impulsively, he cradled her face between his hands and kissed her deeply.

When they finished, she had a dazed expression on her face. "Wotcher," she mumbled. "I like the way you apologize!" she said with a satisfied smile and bright eyes.

"BUFFY!" came a loud masculine voice from the opening of the cavern.

All eyes turned towards the entrance as Sirius Black ran, panting, down the stairs while wielding the blood-red and silver slayer scythe. Once Sirius reached the foot of the stairs, his face took on a deer-in-the-headlights appearance as he took in the sight of everyone tending to the wounded, carrying the dead, or otherwise standing about casually.

"Uh," he mumbled with a slack-jawed look. "Is the fight over?"

"We wish," Faith snorted. "Took out most of those goons but got three-hundred left. Witchy here," she gestured towards Tonks, "just flew the rest of them off so we got some downtime."

"Oh," he replied with a dejected look. "Well, I've got your scythe, Buffy," he said with a smile as he handed the weapon to the now-Original Slayer.

When the scythe landed in Buffy's outstretched hand, her breath was taken away by the energy that it emanated. When she touched it, she could feel each of her sister-slayers… and while that description sounded strange to her, in her heart she felt the truth of the matter.

*She was no longer alone.*

A few weeks ago, she and Faith had – more or less – reconciled, but the burden still fell upon Buffy. Now though… now the burden was still there, but she didn't feel like she was carrying it alone. There were dozens of her kind here and – she could feel them through the scythe – hundreds more out there in the world.

Shaking herself back into the present, her eyebrows furrowed as she took in Sirius, Tonks, and the other wand-wielders behind them.

"So…'splainy, please?"

* * *

Meanwhile, unaware that their unexpected wizarding guests had taken out all the Turok-Han who escaped the cavern, Dawn, Fred, and Giles were standing idly in the main corridor.

"How do you think it's going down there?" Dawn asked quietly as she gripped her wand loosely.

"I daresay that I'm not quite sure. We have yet to see any rampaging Turok-Han, so that is a good thing," Giles presumed.

"So… maybe we're winning?" Fred asked with a hint of hope in her voice.

Giles remained silent – unwilling to jinx them and completely unwilling to believe that they weren't.

* * *

"So Kennedy was really Lucius Malfoy wearing a poppy juice thing, Willow was being mind-controlled by her-slash-his creepy ring, Andrew and the real Kennedy were locked in a freaking Aladdin lamp, Luke wasn't bad after all, and now the American Wizarding community wants to help us banish the First?" Buffy succinctly pulled together all the information that Tonks, Sirius, and Secretary Asp had given her.

"Correct," Sirius confirmed.

"Okay, so what do we do now?" Faith asked as she turned to Buffy, whose head was bent in deep thought. "Out of our fifty _B.I.B. Squad_ dudes, we have forty-one left, out of our fifty-one potentials, we have forty-four, and everyone else is still kicking, more or less."

Buffy looked at those gathered around her – Sirius, Tonks, Secretary Asp, Faith, Spike, Angel, and Xander – and let out a small sigh as she looked over the cliff again.

"We've still got to take out those three-hundred uber-vamps and then go further into the cavern, to see if we can find a better way of vanquishing the First. Until the vamps are taken care of, though, I think we should stay up here and use the high ground."

"Do you really think you can vanquish the First Evil?" Secretary Asp questioned. "It is an incorporeal entity that lives off evil… can such a thing happen?"

Buffy exchanged looks with Faith and Spike before she shrugged.

"Honestly? We don't know… but we don't have any other ideas, either. Our Guardian, Luna," Buffy gestured towards the thirteen-year old girl twenty feet away who was being looked at by Remus, "saw a vision of the last time the First tried to come out to play. Apparently, the First Slayer was able to trap the First Evil – in its corporeal form – in a Devil's Trap and somehow expelled him back to hell… Not that we know how."

Hazel eyes met the eyes of those around her and she gave a slight shrug. "At the very least, we know that this is the lair of the First Evil and if there's any information to get rid of it, it'll be down there."

**"DOWN THERE…OR RIGHT HERE?"** a voice boomed from below. It rumbled deeply like an earthquake and struck fear into each person's heart. Harsh, grating laughter punctuated its mocking statement and most people jumped slightly at the sound.

Frozen in shock, Buffy finally forced herself to look down into the pit – even though every instinct told her to run.

At the mouth of a tunnel that lay at the back of the cave was a figure that towered ten feet over the tallest Turok-Han. Residual fires cast a reddish sheen onto the black metallic armor that covered its body from head to toe. The helmet was broad, like the knights of medieval times, but the faceplate was more like an African mask that depicted devil-like features. The mouth was circular with glistening white teeth, the eyes glowed red-hot, and it had two metallic horns curled at least two feet high. In all other respects, the rest of the body just looked like a regular suit of armor… but there was unquestionably something unnatural about it. When the iron-clad figure walked, it did so with an unnatural grace that should have been impossible underneath so much metallic weight.

"What _is_ that?" Secretary Asp asked in a soft, fearful whisper.

Light footsteps sounded behind them and suddenly Luna's hand was grasping Spike's as she stared down at the figure with a mix of dread and astonishment.

"You already know the answer, Madam Secretary. There is no other creation that can strike a combination of terror and malevolence into all that witness him," she informed in a dreamlike voice as she stared, almost enchanted, by the sight.

Buffy squinted. "So…_that's_ the First Evil's true form? He kinda looks like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz," she declared with a skeptical raised eyebrow.

"**Slayer!**" his voice boomed. "**You are a fool to mock me, but over time I have noted that as your most prominent trait. Your attack came too soon for my plan to become corporeal again to succeed, but I have managed to house my spirit within this suit.**"

There was another loud burst of laughter that sounded like rocks being crushed together before he continued to speak. "**But thanks to your delivery service of heroes, I shall become flesh once more after I drink the blood from all of your friends' bones.**"

Buffy could feel the panic in the room heightening at those words and she doubted her ability to fight off this Big Bad. Next to her, Faith let out a muttered "Well, _fuck_" and she heard others make similar comments.

"Wait a minute. Crescent, didn't you have a vision about this?" Spike spoke up up in a hushed voice.

Luna nodded sagely, looking for all the world like a middle-aged woman trapped in a teen's body.

"In a way. My grandmother spoke to me in a dream last night and sang a song."

Then Luna began to softly sing the phases that had been running through her head all morning.  
_  
"Spirit and flesh,  
Are not ready to mesh.  
Luckily this time,  
You've prevented this crime._

_But where there is a will, there is a way,_  
_A Kwanza Bovu will have his say._  
_Forged in blood and fire,_  
_He will be sired._

_Salt the Devil's Trap,_  
_His power will be wrapped._  
_She will strike with the Scythe,_  
_And rejoice as he writhes."_

"Forged in blood and fire, he will be sired," Sirius repeated thoughtfully. "That must be his suit of armor."

"Okay, so we just gotta create a Devil's Trap, like Remus and Angel got tattooed on their chest, and Buffy stabs him with the scythe. That sounds easy," Faith shrugged.

Below them the ground began to shake and Buffy gave Faith a dark look.

"Really, Faith? You just _had_ to say that?"


	92. Bitch Slap with the Devil's Trap

**A/N:**

Here's is DarkLady 's (Karen) shout-out! She won the guessing game a while back on guessing what Luna's middle name 'Gardiena' meant and she chose her prize, which was to 'die a grisly death'! I hope she enjoys *grins*

Thanks for reviewing & thanks to Greywizard for being my beta!

* * *

"What's happening?" Xander yelped as he and many others fell to the ground due to the violent shakes of the earth.

Buffy wasn't sure if they should face the First Evil and the three-hundred remaining vamps now or make a retreat… but after taking a moment to look over the girls in her care, she made a judgment call. "Everyone! Retreat upstairs!"

Dozens of individuals began scrambling for the staircase that led up into the basement, when suddenly the cliff crumbled below them. Shouts and gasps echoed through the cavern as everyone entered a moment of free-fall and prayed like hell that they would survive the impact… or maybe not, considering what evil awaited them.

"_Tabernus Leviosa!_" Sirius shouted, and soon the other witches and wizards followed suit with the amplified hover charm that allowed the user to hover objects of great weight at a higher altitude. With their faces screwed up in concentration, it was clear that the spell caster needed to have a great deal of focus to maintain the charm.

However, while it was nice that they didn't fall to their deaths, they were still only forty feet above the hungry and snarling Turok-Han who were eying them eagerly.

"Shit! B! What's Plan, B?" Faith called out as she hefted Olaf's Troll Hammer over her shoulder.

"Um," Buffy's eyes roved over her fellow warriors. "_B.I.B. Squad_! Use the rest of your weaponry on the remaining vamps – now! Archers! Time to bust out those flaming arrows!"

"**Slayer, this is futile and you know it**," the First Evil sighed mockingly as its voice seemed to vibrate with power. "You can kill all of my precious pets, but it won't stop me. After I consume the souls of you and your newly empowered slayers, I will become flesh…and then I will take back this world as I so rightfully deserve."

Buffy was too focused on firing more flaming arrows - thanks to Remus' replenishing spell, they would never run out - and Molotov cocktails, thank to Anya's unique contribution. All around them were echoes of rapid gunfire, explosions, crackling fire, and shrieks of pain from the dying Turok-Han. The nasty vamps were falling quick – it seemed that Remus and Giles' hypothesis that the previously released uber vamps had some special evil energy like Caleb had – was correct. These vamps were _far_ tougher than a normal vamp, but they were nothing like the one she killed at the construction site.

"**Did you hear me, Slayer? I will kill each of your little girls, one by one…and make you watch**," the First threatened; in a way, that made it sound almost irritated that Buffy was ignoring him.

"Buffy," Sirius said with gritted teeth. "Hover charms aren't meant to last forever – we can't hold this for much longer." His brow glistened with sweat and his wand hand shook slightly as everyone fell about ten feet before he and a few other wizards held them up again.

"We just need some more time," Buffy said as she focused on a particularly ugly uber vamp and released her arrow.

"Hold on!" Tonks shouted as one by one each wizard and witch lost their hold and the remnants of their army fell loudly to the ground.

At once, the Turok-Han were upon them, but they weren't going for killing blows – likely because their master needed them alive for whatever ritual he needed to become flesh again. Luckily, that gave Buffy and the others some leverage, since it was easier to kill your opponent when they were just trying to capture you.

Faith roared like an Amazon warrior as she slung her new Troll Hammer at huddles of Turok-Han and knocked a dozen back at once with its power. Buffy grunted as she deftly wielded the Scythe, tearing through her opponents like a lawnmower through grass.

"**Enough!**" the First Evil's voice thundered and all of the vampires froze – although that didn't stop the Wolfram and Hart men and _Team Lethal Weapon_ from shooting or the slayers, Angel, Connor, and Spike to stop decapitating. The witches and wizards mostly focused on defensive spells that would blow the attacking vampires backwards, since most of them were still recuperating from the intensely draining hover charm – and there was also the fact that there were few aggressive spells that worked well against the vamps.

"What's the matter, Mr. Evil?" Buffy grunted as a Turok-Han's head flew off and its body exploded into dust. "You feeling a little neglected over there?"

"**No**," he said quietly. Buffy's eyes darted to him and them they flew open. In the First Evil's metallic claw hung an impassive Luna Lovegood, who appeared deep in thought as she swayed slightly fifteen feet in the air.

"**How about you stop all this fighting nonsense and give yourself up, Slayer? Otherwise, I'll rip out the Guardian's entrails and choke you with them**," the First seemed to sneer.

Spike snarled and tried to race over there but Faith yanked him back. "Cool it, big guy. No sudden moves," she hissed.

"You won't be able to choke all of us before we kill you," Vi spat angrily.

"I think I was talking to the Slayer," the First Evil said in a cool voice, but one that reverberated with power nonetheless.

"We're all slayers now, homie," Rona snorted.

"Yeah, and some of us have debts to collect," Ida, the very first Slayer-Werewolf thanks to the First Evil manipulating Remus, growled.

Buffy was suddenly overwhelmed by this new feeling…there was a sense of pride at the courage her protégés were displaying and then there was this sense of stability – she was strengthened by this feeling of _family_. The burden of slaying truly belonged to _all_ of them. While it was a strange feeling and slightly unsettling – change always is difficult – it was a welcome feeling.

"You heard my fellow sister slayers," Buffy smirked. "So why don't you let go of Luna and take up your issues with us."

"Yeah, we 'bout to recycle yo tin ass," Faith added with an eager expression. After all, this dude had been making her life hell and killing lots of girls who didn't deserve it – she was on edge waiting to kill this mo-fo.

"**No, I think I'll kill the Guardian first**," the First said, and they could hear the humor in his voice.

Luna then let out a triumphant sound – which was very confusing to everyone at that very moment – and planted her hand against the First's clawed glove. "_Micma_!" she loudly proclaimed as the armor below her hand glowed white-hot and the First Evil let out a roar of pain, dropping Luna in the process.

Lightning-quick, Spike darted forward, snatched Luna up and quickly placed her behind the front lines of their army. As the First Evil howled and tore off his glove, dark black smoke trailed slowly out of the open spot in his armor.

Spike gave Luna a quizzical look. "Crescent, what did you do?" His tone held surprise, pride, and tinge of fearful wonder.

A slow smile slid across her face as she watched the almighty evil spirit clutch his arm to his metallic chestplate in pain. She looked at Spike and then glanced at the others who were listening.

"When A Kwanza Bovu grabbed me, this memory popped into my head. It was not my own…it must have been one of my ancestors. But I learned how to burn symbols into an object and how to activate it so the creature would be hurt." Looking quite pleased with herself and her successful experiment, Luna nodded in Spike's direction.

"**You…will…pay…**" the First rasped. "**Bring their living – but broken – bodies to me**!" the rocky voice rumbled throughout the cavern.

All hell broke loose then.

There were now, according to Xander's magical eye, seventy-one remaining Turok-Han and each one of them fought fervently. However, the might of dozens of supernatural beings, magic users, and weaponry were quickly taking them out. Had that been their only factor, their battle would have been easily won.

Unfortunately for them, the First Evil had jumped into the fray.

He plucked Karen's head off of her body like it was a trivial dandelion bud and poured the contents of her blood through the mouth-hole in his helmet. Her head flew over the cavern and bounced against the wall, where it rolled silently away from the battle.

Those nearby, namely Vi, Caridad, and Christy, almost vomited at the revolting display of depravity towards their fellow slayer. Before they could even cry out at the foul event the First Evil crushed two Wolfram and Hart men under his foot and uprooted Rosa by her thick black hair, like he was harvesting slayers, and did the same to her.

Faith swung her troll hammer at his massive knee and her lips curled at seeing the First fly back twenty feet. "Pick on someone your own size!" she shouted angrily. After some reconsideration, she smirked slightly. "Though I 'spose there aren't a lot of peeps in Cali your size, 'cept Ah-nold. Maybe you wanna wait here while I get the Gov-er-nator?" she asked mockingly in a bad imitation of Arnold Schwarzenegger's voice.

"Your sense of humor is as non-existent as your life is about to be," the First growled as it stood back up.

"We'll see 'bout that," Faith muttered as her she entered 'berserker' mode and began swinging her troll hammer every which way.

* * *

Willow was still in the exact same spot that Sirius had left her in – collapsed on the floor within her circle of crystals – when someone –or something – began pounding on the door. She sat up quickly, and regretted it, before calling out in a weak voice, "Who's there?"

"It's Dawn, Fred, and Giles. You ok, Will?" Dawn's voice crept to her.

Sighing in relief, Willow undid Sirius' magical reinforcements on the door and allowed her friends to enter – all without moving more than her hand. "Ye-eah, I'm good," she drawled with a goofy smile.

"Uh-oh, she's Bad Magic Willow!" Dawn yelped. "She looks all magic-high again."

"Willow?" Giles asked in an apprehensive voice.

Willow just giggled and shook her head. The idea of black magic at the moment didn't hold any appeal for her. In fact, after her glorious experience today, she doubted that she would ever return to such a dirty form of magic. Today she had discovered the true essence of pure magic and all the power and responsibilities that came with it.

"It's cool, Dawnie. I'm me… just a little high – but not bad magic high!" She giggled again while the three of them gave her insane looks.

Forcing herself to put a serious expression on her face, she tried to explain.

"I did it. I tapped into the essence of the slayer and I activated all of the potentials… and not just the girls with us, either! There were hundreds all over the world." Willow sighed. "It's hard to explain, but you have no idea how amazing it was to be connected to everything again…using good magic this time. It was amazing," she smiled widely.

Giles gave her a gentle smile. "I knew that you would be able to do it, Willow. I am incredibly proud." Like a proud father, he lightly squeezed her shoulder in support.

"Yeah, good job, Willow!" Fred smiled.

"Yeah, way to go, Wills. Question, though. Why haven't we heard from Buffy and the others yet? What's going on down there?" Dawn asked in a frustrated voice; clearly worried about her sister.

With a frown, Willow laid her hand on the linoleum floor. "Sirius left to take the scythe to Buffy a while ago…" she drifted off as she began using magic to focus on what was happening directly below them.

"I see…the cavern…it's lit with bright fires and there's…lots of blood…and bodies." Dawn gasped and Willow continued. "The injured and dead look like a lot of potentials – er, newbie slayers – and those guys from the law firm, but that's it. Most of the bodies are injured Turok-Han, though. And…" Willow gasped so hard that she began choking and Giles had to pat her harshly on the back.

"Willow? What is it?" he asked in concern he asked in alarm as he pushed his glasses up his nose.

"Oh goddess, Giles. I can feel it…and see it. The First Evil is down there." Her head rose to look Giles straight in the eye.

"And it's killing slayers."

* * *

After issuing several dents into the First Evil's armor, Faith let out a stream of gusty laughter. "Dude, your ride's getting all messed up. You better call Xzibit and ask him to pimp yo ride!"

She could practically hear the First snarl at her and Faith somersaulted out of the way to avoid a heavy kick. However, she wasn't fast enough to elude a clawed punch in the stomach by a hand that was as big as her head. Faith went sailing into a crowd of salivating Turok-Han, only semi-conscious, and would have wound up dead if it wasn't for Angel jumping into the fray to save her.

Buffy saw all this and immediately made her way to her nemesis, chopping several Turok-Han into bits along the way. Just as the First moved to snatch Juliet, Buffy took a running leap into the air and swung the slayer scythe into its remaining glove. Surprisingly, her weapon failed to embed itself into her opponent and Buffy fell to the ground in a heap.

"**Foolish woman**," the First hissed. "**This suit is magically protected by my powers. Your little friend Faith may have inflicted some damage, but nothing can permanently impair me – this is my avatar until the ritualistic feeding of slayer blood is complete**."

Buffy grimaced. If Luna's vision was correct then there _was_ a way to stop this thing…but none of them knew how they were going to salt a Devil's Trap and then get the First Evil to hop onto it.

"Yeah, well maybe I can't hurt you, but maybe I can. Considering you're planning on drinking my blood, I think I'll take my chances with fighting," she snapped back.

They entered a dance then - the First Evil and the Original Slayer.

Buffy's lithe figure would spiral around as she looked for holes in his armor and then take experimental shots. Each time the scythe would scrape harmlessly off and then Buffy would have to pirouette away to evade the First's blows. Their movements were ferocious and swift, but Buffy knew that she was out-matched by even this weak shell of the First. She only hoped that Luna would figure out how to create a Devil's Trap here in the devil's personal domain.

* * *

Luna watched the fight between the First and Buffy with wide eyes as she tried to calculate how to incorporate a Devil's Trap symbol into the battle. She stood safely at Spike's side, near the other wizards, and noted his tense muscles at watching Buffy engage in such a deadly battle. Poor Spike – she knew it must be hard for him to just watch and suddenly she felt guilty that he felt the need to protect her.

'_No matter_,' she thought with a small sigh. The sooner she figured out how to create the trap the sooner they would all be safe. Of course, the first thing she needed to do was find some salt…unfortunately, they didn't have any down here…

Wait! There were still others upstairs – Dawn, Willow, Giles, and that Fred woman. They could help!

Sitting cross-legged on the dusty ground, she closed her eyes and began to concentrate.

* * *

Willow and the others were just entering the basement when an intrusive force in her mind made Willow stumble slightly.

"Will?" Dawn asked worriedly.

She opened her mouth to reply but a voice stopped her.

'_Willow_,' came a soft ethereal voice that was distinctly Luna Lovegood. '_We need your help. Do you have any salt?_'

'_Salt?_' Willow questioned. '_Like table salt?_'

'_Any kind. We need it to bind the First_'

Biting her bottom lip, Willow turned to her friends. "Okay, so Luna just did some telepathic communication with me and she needs salt. Does anyone know where we can get some? Like, would there be some in the cafeteria?"

"I imagine so," Giles mused as he glanced above them. "I suppose we'll need to run and get that."

"Wait, I can do it!" Dawn grinned. "_Accio_ cafeteria salt!" The adults looked at Dawn in surprise, realizing that they sometimes forgot how bright the teen really was at problem-solving. Soon a ten-pound economy sized canister of salt breezed through the basement and into Dawn's arms.

"Go Dawnie!" Willow beamed while the others agreed.

They rushed towards the Seal and, after climbing down the steps, realized that the stairs led to nowhere since the landing, judging by the mass of broken rock directly below them, must have collapsed. Further, beyond the ruined stairs were several dozen Turok-Han attacking the members of their army, and beyond them was a strange armored creature that was battling Buffy with fervor.

"What do we do with it now?" Dawn asked. "Can you send it down there, Willow?"

Seeing Luna, Willow mentally alerted the girl that they were sending the salt down and then concentrated on floating it down…but the canister barely lifted before falling back into Dawn's arms.

"I'm sorry," she apologized. "I'm guessing that after a spell of that magnitude, it'll be a while for my batteries to get charged. But you could do it, Dawnie."

The teen's eyes widened in surprise before she shook her head. "Oh no, that's hundreds of feet down and over. There's no way I could."

Clasping her arm, Willow captured Dawn's eyes with a significant look.

"Dawn, a year ago, I never thought I would be able to even _use_ magic again, much less tap into the power of the goddess to grant hundreds of girls with ancient gifts. You can definitely pull off a simple hover charm.

After a pensive moment, Dawn nodded and then raised her wand.

* * *

Buffy flew back twenty feet from a rib-crunching toss, courtesy of the First. Dropping into a roll, she somersaulted over some rocks before her momentum ended. With blood dripping from a cut at the corner of her lips and more internal bleeding than she had ever experienced, Buffy was definitely *not* winning this fight at the moment. However, she had prevented the First from killing more people, so that was definitely of the good.

On the other hand, apparently the First thought she was out of the game currently, because it pinched the back of Chloe's shirt and tossed the young girl up into the air like a tennis ball. She shrieked in horror as the First caught her and subsequently ripped off her right arm, squeezed hot blood into its 'mouth', tossed her aside, and then promptly bitch-slapped Angel in the face with Chloe's torn appendage.

A formidable growl was torn through Buffy's throat from witnessing this crime as she gathered her senses and began running back to the First.

Besides avenging Chloe's ghastly death, she was going to have to let the First know that _no one_ bitch-slapped her ex-boyfriend but her!

* * *

Seeing Buffy re-engage in the fight against the First and noticing Spike's eyes straying to the slayer, Luna nudged him. "Go on. Help Buffy."

He frowned at her, but she saw a spark in his eyes. "Hush now, Crescent. I can't let you get hurt."

Clutching her salt canister protectively against her chest, Luna shook her head. "I'll be fine. Just remember to look up." Spike didn't make a motion to move, so Luna lightly pushed him. "Go!" she urged.

Turning to Sirius, whom she had just gone over her plans with, Luna let out a deep breath. "I'm ready."

Sirius nodded. His body was slick with sweat from his dueling efforts and the hot bon-fires, but he didn't look too exhausted as he pushed his drenched locks behind his ears.

"Let's go," Sirius said with a grim smile and a defiant look in his eye. Oh yes, he would get his revenge against the First for enticing Lucius to harm his Willow.

* * *

The First Evil kicked the ensouled vampire – Spike, in this case – to the side as he released a wave of dark energy. Pointing towards the tunnel that led into the back of the cavern, he cried out, "**So you fools think you have killed all my pets? Think again!**" Suddenly dozens, then hundreds of Turok-Han began piling into the cavern.

"You are fucking shitting me," Faith groaned at the sight.

"Sometimes, I really wonder if I was a major douche in my past lives to deserve this," Xander added with a clenched jaw.

Angel, who had just dusted a Turok-Han next to Xander, snorted in amusement and mumbled something under his breath.

Xander didn't hear the remark and was currently busy searching for new ammunition, but he scowled nonetheless at Dead Boy.

"Wizards!" Tonks shouted. "Let's create a ditch!"

With some more mumbled words, a group of five wizards with Tonks performed a spell that made the ground collapse between them and the new vampires. A crevice formed, one that was fifty feet wide and took up a bit of room in the immense cavern. The depths of the crevice grew to be at least fifty feet deep as well. Some Turok-Han were foolish enough to attempt the jump, but each of them fell with a snarling scream that faded the further they fell.

Further away from the others, Buffy and Spike were still trying their best to damage the First, but they were having a tough go at it. Buffy managed to make sparks fly when the mystical metal of the scythe clashed sharply against the First's metal armor, but only a thin scratch remained. With a grunt, she rolled between its legs and jumped when she heard the movement of metal, but she was too late.

The First had barely caught her – only her left dainty hand was hanging from its grip – and she let out a vicious scream as she struggled and fruitlessly swung her scythe upwards.

"**I wanted to save you for last, Slayer…but I am finding you tiresome. A quick end shall be given to you**," the First rumbled as he slowly raised her to his mouth.

"What's the matter, ya impotent pillock? Can't save the lady for later because you're worried about making your performance last?" When the First didn't respond, Spike waved his arms and hurriedly continued.

"Yeah, you stupid wanker, I'm talking to you! I've got a bone to pick with you for making me your bitch. By the way, how do you like the fact that I was able to get rid of you? Huh? Ain't that funny – big, supposedly badass 'first evil'," Spike quoted with his hands as he spoke in a whiny child-like voice, "couldn't beat a regular 'ol vampire. Ha! You ain't as powerful as you like to make people think, are ya?"

The First growled and threw Buffy at Spike with such force that the vampire was knocked backwards into the ground.

"**Stupid vampire. You think I don't know what you're doing? Trying to make me angry so I go after you and not your beloved. Fool. I think instead I'll break every bone of the Slayer's before I drink her blood – and force you to watch."**

Spike helped Buffy up, but didn't move either of them as he stood in the same place. In fact, he used some of his strength to keep her motionless.

"Try it, you sodding poof. Enough of the big talk, I'd like to see you try something, because for the 'original evil' of the world, you sure are a disappointment, mate."

With a deafening roar,, the First Evil lumbered towards Spike and Buffy.

"Spike," Buffy hissed. "You really could have stopped with the name calling _after_ it dropped me, ya know."

"Just trust me, pet," he whispered back. As the First stepped directly in front of Spike, the vampire picked up the slayer and leapt out of the way.

"Spike, what the heck?" a flabbergasted Buffy asked in alarm.

"Watch," he murmured.

"**You can run, but you cannot hide – I see all**," the First cackled as it stood menacingly before them. An immense fire flickered and roared behind his fifteen-foot frame that cast the First into shadow. Red eyes glittered in the darkness and caused his entire helmet to reflect a reddish glow; a fearful image.

"Oh yeah?" Spike smirked. "Did ya see that?" he asked disdainfully as his index finger jabbed upwards.

The First's head snapped forward until it took in the sight of an intricate design drawn on the ceiling, made from salt and attached to the ceiling with magic. Next to the design were Luna Lovegood and Sirius Black, floating in the air thanks to a hovering charm that Sirius was using. Both wore wide, wicked smiles.

"**NO**!" the First roared in rage. "**A Devil's Trap!**" It tried in vain to move past the confines of the design drawn directly above it, but it found no success.

A confident smile graced Buffy's features as she sauntered towards the First. "Honestly, little Firsty, you really should have known better than to try to take over the world by starting in Sunnydale. It hasn't worked for people in the last seven years and it isn't about to work now."

The First's one claw swiped at her but Buffy leapt onto its arm, ran up to its shoulder, and pierced its neck with the Slayer Scythe. Powerless in the Devil's Trap, this time Buffy had no trouble slicing through its armor… and severing its head. Black smoke billowed from its neck and a piercing scream filled the cavern before the suit of armor fell to the ground with a boom.

Leaping to the ground – and staggering some, since she *was* seriously injured, she gave the army a triumphant smile. All of the Turok-Han that they had been faced with were now nothing more than dust in the wind and the others were effectively separated, thanks to the wizard's magical crevice.

Where the First Evil's vessel lay, a bright flame erupted on the spot and suddenly exploded without warning, causing everyone to fall backwards ten feet. The ground shook beneath their feet and intense vibrations caused giant cracks to snake up the cavern's walls. A deafening, thundererous noise blasted their eardrums and the ground began opening up around them, like an earthquake of biblical proportions.

"Wizards! We need to implement hover charms to get people out of here and into the buses!" Sirius shouted as he began using magic to raise the injured and unconscious towards the mouth of the seal, where Willow, Dawn, Giles, and Fred were waiting.

Soon, everyone was flying hundreds of feet into the air, as the cavern began collapsing around them. Dust filled Buffy's lungs and she choked on it. Shielding her eyes, she searched for anyone who was injured and needed help and then directed the wizards to fly them up. With a sigh of relief she realized that her all of her friends were still alive, which was not something she was expecting. However, the sight of numerous human bodies on the ground filled her with anguish at her failure to protect them all.

"Buffy!" Sirius called as he almost fell down with the force of the violent earthquake. "Come on!"

Buffy nodded and allowed him to raise her up, after taking one last look at the remnants of the battle and the hundreds of screaming Turok-Han that were being swallowed by the earth.

* * *

"Sirius, baby, are you okay?" Willow asked anxiously as she inspected him during their bus ride out of Sunnydale – which had caved in before their eyes as they'd motored as fast they could out of town. It had been disturbing to see her hometown sink like a bad soufflé; to know that her home was gone. She was trying not to think about that, however. At the very least, she felt better because Dawn, Tonks, and some other volunteers had used summoning spells to get the photographs and other invaluable items from their house before everything disappeared.

Sirius smiled weakly as she inspected his ribs. He was definitely worse for wear, but it was worth it to have his Willow fretting over him again. Sirius thought she was adorable when she worried like this. Clasping her chin, he brought her lips to his for a gentle kiss. "I'll be fine, love. Nothing a bit of Nurse Willow time can't fix," he smirked.

Willow blushed and rolled her eyes as she obviously remembered one of their role-playing moments. "Sirius, we almost died and that's all you can think about?" she asked in mock-exasperation. The heart-wrenching terror and exhilaration of the battle was still fresh to Willow and this light-hearted moment felt so needed amidst everything else.

With a snort, he raised his eyebrow. "Darling, I lost you for several weeks, thanks to an evil bastard, and I've just finished helping to save the entire bloody world."

He paused for a beat. "Of course all I can think about is sex."

Shaking her head with a giggle, Willow snuggled close to him. "I'm still sleepy from the spell. Just wake me up once we get far enough past Sunnydale's new crater that the Department of Magical Affairs can start portkeying our injured to their hospital, so I can make sure that you go, too."

"Willow, I hate hospitals. Besides, I'm an outlaw," he protested with a small pout.

"Hush," she stopped him with a finger pressed against his lips. "Secretary Asp already cleared your name so you can receive medical treatment and you're going."

Noting that her 'Resolve Face' was on, Sirius sighed and let his shoulders drop. There was no way he was getting out of this demand.

But… that was alright with him. After all, he was just thrilled to have Willow looking out for him again.

* * *

A/N:

Please let me know what you think of how this chapter went!

**http:/www-dot-masksoftheworld-dot-com/Africa/African%20black%20Ojo%20Mask-dot-htm – This is the mask that I used as an idea for what the First's mask looks like.

**/~cgb143/enoch_conc_lo-dot-html - got 'Micma' from here, which means 'behold' (supposedly) in Enochian, the language of the Angels according to 'Supernatural' – and a medieval text that I read .


	93. Epilogue

**A/N:**

O'Dearest Readers! The end has arrived! Thank you all so, so much for reading and reviewing. Honestly, I doubt I would have written such a convoluted and lengthy story without the support of everyone who reviewed. So to everyone who reviewed, thank you so much. To those who helped me with brainstorming and editing at some point along the way (Greywizard, AllenPitt, and DeepBlueJoy), many thanks as well for your time, creativity, and keen eye. To my generous artists at TtH who donated art (Methos, borgrabit, and MistressAshley), you are all amazing and I thank you for your time. And for those who have been reading it, thanks for experiencing this (exactly) 8-month journey with me :)

* * *

It was late May, a month after Sunnydale had played hide-and-go seek with the world by collapsing into a crater. Time had gone by at a nice, relaxed pace since the First Evil had been vanquished. After the memorial service for those who were killed in the battle (seventeen potentials, two wizards, and twenty-three men from Wolfram and Hart's security team), the Angel Investigations gang immediately went back to L.A. and their newly acquired law firm. Unsurprisingly, Connor declined his father's invitation to return to L.A. and opted to stay with the Scoobies and Slayers.

The path for the Scoobs and Slayers, however, was less clear than Angel's team. Giles had quickly pointed out the new challenges that awaited them – reorganizing the Watcher's Council, finding the newly called Slayers, and putting all of the new Slayers into training. Plus, he babbled on about some Hellmouth in Cleveland that they should take a look at.

However, Giles was unanimously overruled by everyone else who decided that a month-long vacation was in order.

The young Slayers were transported, thanks to the American Department of Magical Affairs, back to their homes and families. The few Slayers who were alone in the world, thanks to Bringers killing their families, were quickly invited by their fellow Slayers to go back home with them.

Giles had returned back to England and did the G-Man style of relaxing – he worked. After making contact with a few retired Watchers and the very few who had not been murdered, he went about organizing the Watchers Council's assets. As the senior Watcher – not only because he technically 'watched' dozens of slayers instead of just Buffy, but also because he had helped to save the entire freaking world – Giles had essentially become the new Director of the Council. Judging by the well thought-out manner in which he organized the Council post-apocalypse, it was clear that Giles had been making plans beforehand. Within two weeks, he had re-opened an ancient Council asset, a castle, and began housing the new Slayers and Watchers who were re-joining the organization. Connor, Andrew, and Robin also made their home at the castle and were helping Giles develop training seminars for the new Slayers and other reorganization work.

Xander, hero that he was, went with Giles to England to 'help' set-up the Council, but in actuality, he moved there to be able to spend time with Tonks. Sure, he was a boon to Giles' reorganization plan, but after seeing a chance at happiness in the romance department, Xander was eager to be closer to his new girlfriend.

Remus had taken Anya back to his home in the English countryside where Willow assumed they were probably doing it like bunnies… well, probably not like bunnies since the idea of floppy-eared creatures were probably the _only_ thing to put a hold on Anya's sex drive, but Willow was sure it was something like that. Since Giles had access to the Council's reserve of money, which was in the billions range, he had immediately offered the hard-working werewolf a paying job as a Watcher and professor at the soon-to-be-established Slayer Academy. Remus had been thrilled by the opportunity, although Anya seemed displeased that with Remus' working schedule her sex needs would not get satisfied as often. Anya, for her part, had begrudgingly agreed to help Giles as well – but only for lots of shiny United Kingdom banknotes.

Faith, not used to spending so much time with other people, had quickly taken off with the promise that she would show up later in the summer. No one was quite sure where she went, but after her actions in the war against the First, people trusted her to come back and help.

Luna went back home to her house in Ottery St. Catchpole to reconnect with home and her father. The soon-to-be fourteen year old girl had taken the major changes in her life remarkably well for someone her age, but it was clear that she needed a break – and a time to be a kid again.

Buffy, Dawn, and Spike had decided on using their new Council funds – it had been decided that each Slayer and other 'employees' would be paid, including retroactive pay – to travel to the world's most relaxing locales. So far, Willow thought that they had been to St. Lucia, the Canary Islands, Rome, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro. Each place with a beach had been Buffy's idea, while the historical European cities were the request of the history-geeky Dawn. It both was and was not surprising that Spike was asked to accompany them, but Willow thought it made sense. After everything they had been through, not even Xander could hate the idea of Spike spending time with Buffy.

As for her and Sirius? They had gone back 'home' to the cottage that had started it all.

Their bond had strengthened after Sirius saved Willow from Lucius Malfoy, but the days afterward had been a struggle that had taken time to get over. Willow had remembered how she had been tricked into killing a lion…which she later learned had been Secretary Katherine Asp's niece, Jenny. The pain of realizing what a dark act she had committed made her alternate between vomiting and sobbing for two days afterward. That evil place that she had been in…just thinking about it sent shivers down her spine. A dark part of her thought it was ironic that Lucius had controlled her mind just as she had similarly done with Tara the year before.

Tara.

The memory of her former lover still brought a smile to Willow's face. She could easily recall her gentle smile that radiated goodness and those shy yet observant eyes that used to cut through Willow's soul with a mere glance.

Time was a tricky thing, Willow realized. It was hard to believe that Tara had died slightly over a year ago – it seemed so long ago, like another lifetime. A part of Willow would always, _always_ miss her baby, but the part that used to scream in misery at her loss was fully healed.

And while thoughts of Tara made Willow smile from memories past, thoughts of Sirius still made her knees weaken and her breathing heighten.

It pained her to think of what she had unknowingly put him through when she fell under Lucius' spell. Inadvertently, she had put her love through terrible heartache, all because she had been foolish enough to trust Kennedy – or rather, Lucius. Her mouth dried at the thought of it and a vein pulsed in her forehead. Sometimes, Willow wasn't sure if she could forgive herself for allowing that to happen. After all, Sirius' pain was her pain – and her pain, his.

To no one's surprise, her guilt had led to plenty of cookie baking for Sirius…who had actually gotten so sick of them – although he never mentioned it – that Willow had noticed Sirius sneaking platefuls of them to Buckbeak.

She watched him now, making sandwiches for them in the kitchen (with extra-extra pickles for her and the crusts cut off for him), and she was almost overwhelmed by the love she felt in her heart for him. As he glanced up after sliding the unneeded ingredients back into the fridge, he tossed her such a wide, genuinely happy smile that she forgot to breathe for a moment.

"Here you go, love," he said as he plopped two plates on the kitchen table and dropped into the seat across from her.

"Thanks, Padfoot," she grinned. Since returning last month to the cottage she had taken to calling Sirius by his nickname again – somehow, it just felt right.

Of course, since he was still a wanted fugitive in England (although not in America, thanks to the awesomeness of Secretary Asp!), maybe it was better if she learned not to call him by his real name, anyways.

They ate in silence, but it was a comfortable silence. Growing up, Willow used to hate silence. When people didn't talk, she assumed that they were judging her or making mean comments in their head, which is why she would start talking and talking until the babble developed. But with a select few people – Xander and Buffy being the main two – she was okay with silence. With Sirius, the silence wasn't tense or gave off the sense of boredom; instead, it filled her with a calm feeling inside.

"So what time should we leave tomorrow?" he asked as she began to collect the dishes and wash them in the sink.

Raising her voice slightly to be heard over the running water, she answered him. "Well, Giles, Buffy, Xander, and I are meeting for 'tea time' in the afternoon." She used a poor imitation of Sirius' accent when she said 'tea time' and she smirked at his scowl. "I figure it'll take Buckbeack a couple hours to get us there, so maybe at noon? We can have an early lunch."

Sirius nodded and Willow wondered why he looked so pensive at the moment. Hurrying with her dish washing, she impulsively grabbed his hand. Pulling him to his feet, she gave him an impish smile. "Come on, let's cuddle."

He let out a barking laugh and followed her into their bedroom. "You know, I never 'cuddled' with a woman until I met you," he smirked as she pulled him underneath the covers and wove her legs in between his.

"That's only because you needed the right cuddle buddy," she let out a girlish giggle as he wrapped his arms around her.

Sirius snorted. He, being a man, didn't want Willow to think that he _liked_ cuddling or anything…but, he actually kinda did. It felt nice holding Willow – the world seemed safer and better when she was in his arms.

"So," Willow began after several minutes of comfortable silence. "Do you think you'll be okay going back to that old house of yours while Buckbeak is living at the Council Castle and I'm traveling with Buffy?" Her voice was soft and nonchalant – clearly she was worried about how he would fare being alone, but she was trying to pretend she wasn't.

"I'll be fine, Willow," he reassured her. "Dumbledore needed a location for the Order of the Phoenix and my family's old house is the best place, thanks to all my father's protection spells. Besides, while I'm stuck hiding out there and cleaning, Remus, Anya, Xander, and, _Merlin_," he rolled his eyes, "even Andrew said he'd come. Also, the Weasleys will be arriving soon to help clean the house as well."

Curling her head against his chest, she tried to hide her frown. She really didn't like the thought of being away from Sirius and him being by himself. After hearing his descriptions of his experiences growing up there and the current state of the house, she didn't think it sounded like a good place for him to be. But , she guessed she didn't really have much of a choice.

Since only she and Luna could find the new Slayers – Willow, due to her role in the activation spell, and Luna, because she was the Guardian – she and Buffy were leaving tomorrow night to begin their search in Asia. After she got to spend a bit more time at home, Luna would be leaving, with Spike as her companion and protector, to find Slayers in North America. It was imperative that these girls, who were probably very confused about their new powers, be found as quickly as possible and offered a place at the Slayer Academy.

"I know," she sighed. "I just hate the idea of being apart from you for a whole month."

He gifted her with a soft kiss that quickly dissolved into liquid fire.

"You have no idea how much I'm going to miss you," he murmured through ragged breaths.

Her lips curved into a teasing smile. "Show me?" she purred as her hand traced patterns on his chest

Letting out a deep chuckle, Sirius proceeded to do just that.

As his lips roved over her body, Willow realized with a smile that this man had entered her house to steal food, but ended up stealing something much more unexpected – her heart.

_**~*~THE END~*~**_

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* * *

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**A/N:**

I would really, really, really love to hear what you have to say, Dearest Readers, now that the story is finally complete. Even if it's just one word, I would truly appreciate a comment. For anyone who's been reading but has never reviewed, this is the time where you finally hit that 'Review' button *grins*

In the next 24 hours a companion piece to Willow's Thief will be posted. It'll feature Luna & Spike finding slayers across America and Luna finding out what (and perhaps who) makes up part of her legacy. This will be a multi-cross with Supernatural.

Due to popular opinion, there are plans set to write a sequel to 'Willow's Thief' that will take place during Book 5 of Harry Potter and involve the gang taking on Voldemort. Pairings will include: Willow/Sirius, Xander/Tonks, Anya/Remus, Dawn/?, and Faith/? (as of now). Not sure when this will arrive…after 8 months of non-stop writing in this verse I'll likely need a bit of a break. Still, be on the look out :)


	94. An Information Bulletin on this Series

**Author Notes:**

If you can't tell by now, I am not a huge fan of ffnet due to it's site design. I much prefer Twisting the Hellmouth but understand not everyone has/wants an account on there and thus I post to this site.

Since there is no way to keep track of series, I wanted to post a final chapter to 'Willow's Thief' to make readers aware of the subsequent two stories that have been posted to my profile here on ffnet.

**1. Crescent & Spike's Most Excellent Adventure -** (Companion piece to 'Willow's Thief'.) Luna is the Last Guardian…and she's not really sure what that means. She goes on a road trip across the multi-verse with Spike to figure out her role in the world and stop a new Big Bad along the way. (NOW COMPLETE!)

**2. Willow's Choice -** The sequel to 'Willow's Thief': As Willow and Sirius begin to build a new life together, they are besieged by new foes – Voldemort – and old foes long thought to be dead. (In progress)

**Story Details:**

**Title**: Crescent & Spike's Most Excellent Adventure  
**Fandom/Genre:** Supernatural/Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Harry Potter/Gilmore Girls/Law & Order: SVU/True Blood/  
**Main Characters:** Luna Lovegood, Spike, Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester,  
**Supporting Characters:** John Winchester, Lane Kim, Mrs. Kim, Olivia Benson, Fin Tutuola, Tara Thornton, Sookie Stackhouse, Drusilla  
**Rating**: T  
**Pairing(s)**: Luna/Dean  
**Spoilers:** BTVS S7 AU, none for SPN, none for HP…Companion piece to Willow's Thief, but you don't need to read that to read this.  
**Category**: Humor, Action, Friendship,**Story Notes:**This is a companion piece, not a sequel, to my epically long Harry Potter crossover, 'Willow's Thief'. You don't necessarily need to have read 'W.T' to read this, but there are spoilers in this story to some twists in Willow's Thief. But basically, just know that Luna Lovegood is a Guardian (remember in Season 7 of BTVS, there was that old lady that Caleb killed?) and she befriended Spike along the way. In this story, she's going to discover her heritage quite a bit more and meet some interesting folks during her quest.

**Story: **Willow's Choice  
**Author: **Luna (aka Luna_del_Cielo on lj)  
**Fandom: **Harry Potter/Buffy the Vampire Slayer – although due to the events occurring in the second book of this series, Crescent and Spike's Most Excellent Adventure, there may be mentions of characters from the fandoms of Supernatural, True Blood/Sookie Stackhouse, Gilmore Girls, and Law and Order: SVU. These mentions will not require details and will be shallow at best.  
**Cast of Characters: **This story will come from multiple viewpoints and the 'main stars' (at least, for now, because some surprises may await you, Dearest Readers) will include:  
_BTVS: _Willow Rosenberg, Xander Harris, Dawn Summers, Faith Lehane, Buffy Summers  
_Harry Potter: _Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Nymphadora Tonks, Harry Potter, Fred Weasley, Bill Weasley, Fleur Delacour

Secondary and Tertiary Characters will include:  
_BTVS: _Spike, Rupert Giles, Robin Wood, Bernard Crowley, Andrew Wells, Daniel 'Oz' Osbourne, Vi, Rona, Connor, Angel, Fred/Illyria, Cordelia, Gunn, Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, Kennedy  
_Harry Potter: _Buckbeak, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood, Delores Umbridge, Ginny Weasley, Kreacher, Albus Dumbledore, Minerva Mcgonagall, Severus Snape, Tom Riddle/Voldemort, Peter Pettigrew, Narcissa Malfoy, Draco Malfoy, Andromeda Tonks, Ted Tonks, Molly Weasley, Arthur Weasley, Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Elphias Doge, Dedalus Diggle, Emmeline Vance, Sturgis Podmore, Hestia Jones  
_Willow's Thief Original Characters_:Bach Lovegood (Luna's American cousin), Ida (slayer/werewolf), Amelia McGonagall (Minerva's sister and a squib/earth witch who was Willow's 'sponsor' when she went dark)  
**Rating: **T  
**Pairings: **Willow/Sirius. Xander/Tonks. Anya/Remus. And there will be other pairings that involve Dawn, Faith, Harry Potter, Fred Weasley, Bill Weasley, Fleur Delacour  
**Spoilers: **This is a sequel of Willow's Thief and takes place in July after Sunnydale became a crater at the end of Season 7. For Harry Potter it takes place at the very beginning of Book 5 "The Order of the Phoenix". If you want to read a quick recap of Willow's Thief to refresh your memory, I have posted one on my livejournal here .


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